From terrie at mailman.japaninc.com Mon Jan 10 11:55:39 2011 From: terrie at mailman.japaninc.com (terrie at mailman.japaninc.com) Date: Mon, 10 Jan 2011 11:55:39 +0900 Subject: Terrie's Take 596 -- Forecast for 2011, e-biz news from Japan Message-ID: * * * * * * * * * T E R R I E 'S T A K E * * * * * * * A weekly roundup of news & information from Terrie Lloyd. (http://www.terrie.com) General Edition Sunday, January 09, 2010, Issue No. 596 +++ INDEX - What's New - Short Takes - News - Candidate Roundup/Vacancies - Upcoming Events - Corrections/Feedback - News Credits SUBSCRIBE to, UNSUBSCRIBE from Terrie's Take at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take, or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ ---------- PBXL SUPPORTS TELL AND YOU SHOULD TOO ---------- PBXL's corporate responsibility efforts are tightly aligned with our strategic business priorities and integral to our relationships - with clients, employees, and communities. PBXL provides TELL with call center support and service using the latest in Cisco telephony. The Tokyo English Life Line offers free anonymous telephone counseling as well as professional face-to-face counseling for children, families, and individuals. Start the year off right and consider making a donation to support and sustain the Tokyo English Life Line. From all of us at PBXL and TELL, we wish you a prosperous and joyful 2011. Give us a call at 03-4550-1600, shoot us an email at info at pbxl.jp or visit http://en.pbxl.co.jp/ For information about TELL visit http://www.telljp.com/ ------------ PBXL is BUSINESS COMMUNICATIONS -------------- +++ WHAT'S NEW Welcome back to Terrie's Take for 2011. Last year we broke with our tradition of forecasting actual events to focus on trends instead. Readers expressed some disappointment, because actual events are more likely to not happen and more likely to make us look like asses. We agree that entertainment is an important aspect of Terrie's Take, and certainly don't mind looking more like the asses we already are, so for 2011, we're back to specific events. But for the record, if you take a look at the forecast for 2010, at http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/, we were pretty much on the money for 5 out of 8 forecasts and the other 3 are still "on the way" but have been delayed due to skillful maneuvering of the markets by the major industrialized nations. So here we go: 1. Prime Minister Kan will stay on for at least 6 months Naoto Kan, the current Prime Minister of Japan, found his way into the job by virtue of there being no other suitable candidates. We think that after a soft start that saw Kan using challenger Ichiro Ozawa's power base to get the job, Kan and his team have accomplished the difficult job of pulling away from Ozawa without causing a civil war within the ranks of the DPJ party. We think that Kan is underestimated and has a lot more grit than the media give him credit for. He is slowly but surely forming a workable policy base that will see him stay in power beyond the calls for resignation that are going on at the moment. As for Ozawa, the justice machine is grinding slowly in his direction and a guilty verdict will take him out of politics for a while to come. Indeed, we think he'll get sick as a result of the stress and use this as an excuse to exit the political stage. 2. Consumption tax goes on the political agenda The increase of the consumption tax to cover social spending in Japan is an unavoidable subject, due to the fact that the government shows no sign of reducing its current budget and commitments to family and retiree benefits. Given that the next general election isn't until Q1 2013, we anticipate that if Kan can stabilize his position and the trade figures for Japan continue to stay consistent, then the he will raise once more the topic of increasing the consumption tax from 5% to 10% or above. Last time the tax was discussed it toppled the Hatoyama government in 2010, so Kan is going to want broad consensus before bringing this to a national discussion level. We think he will do this and initiate an intelligent debate largely supported by the population and media by the end of this year. [Continued below...] ----------------- Refreshing Your Website ----------------- Do you have a sophisticated website or Intranet site that is hard to maintain and needs an engineer every time you want to make a change? Maybe you should standardize on an open source Content Management System -- one which is widely known and supported, and which lets your staff do most of the updates themselves -- thus reducing your website maintenance budget. LINC Media's Electronic Commerce team builds WordPress and Drupal CMS-driven websites that are quick to set up, reliable, and most importantly give your marketing team the capability of doing their own updates. Our systems include year-round technical support and content support if you want it, all for a competitive flat monthly fee. To find out more, ask about our WEB PARTNERS program -- backed by a solid fully-bilingual team with strong credentials and a desire to please. Contact: nana.yamaguchi at lincmedia.co.jp for details. ----------------------------------------------------------- [...Article continues] 3. Yen to stay in the 80's The reason for a high yen versus the US dollar is hard to fathom, given how shaky the government's finances are -- far exceeding the problems in Greece or Ireland. While the US is certainly in a difficult situation as well, at least they are doing something about their economy. 2011 will see the US dollar have a "twitchy" first half, going up and down as dollar buyers know that they are playing with a contaminated commodity, then in the second half, as the quantatitive easing falls off and economy tightens, consumer spending will be choked off again and there will be another downwards push on the dollar. During this first half lull, Japan will largely ignore its internal economic issues and be content to rely on international trade surpluses and raising money through government bonds. In the second half of the year, the parlous state of Japan's finances will come to the fore again and consumption tax will become the obvious way to buy more time. Indeed, if the tax is increased by 5%, then that will buy at least another 5 years of excess spending before that reservoir of cash is used up as well. 4. Oil and electrics If Israel is going to attack Iran's nuclear installations, it will be this year. This will be a precipitating event that will cause oil to soar in price again, and will make Nissan and Mitsubishi look pretty good for all their efforts to roll out electric vehicles while most of the market thinks they are still an oddity. From all accounts, both companies, but Nissan in particular, are making big strides in the viability of lithium battery technology and we expect to see Nissan take advantage of a global oil crisis to emerge as a star player in the stock markets. 5. No North Asia military confrontation It looks like China has managed to talk some sense into the North Koreans, for now at least, and the tensions between it and South Korea have eased. However, with the bombardment of Yeongpyeong island, the damage is done and this marks the start of an arms build up in North Asia. Japan isn't saying much, but we expect some big budget earmarking to be going on over the next few months, as the country beefs up its military. We don't think there will be "game-ending" military confrontation between the Koreas this year. South Korea is doing too well financially to throw it all away, and North Korea can be bribed, as it well knows and expects. 6. Food safety and opportunity Japan is going to have increasing problems with food safety, especially for foods originating in China. Because there was no major scare in 2010, we think that increases the likelihood of another incident this year. Bird Flu version two mixed with imported meats perhaps? While most such scares are more media events than real threats to society they do have the effect of changing consumer buying behaviors. Therefore, Japan's farming industry has an interesting business opportunity ahead of it -- selling high-value food back to Asia as being pure and contaminant-free. This is already happening with fruit, and we expect it to expand to rice, water, fish, and other staples that are all entirely available elsewhere in Asia, but which because of their "Made in Japan" stamp will sell well to wealthy Asian consumers. 7. Increase in industrial accidents Besides China, food safety in Japan is also threatened by the potential for industrial accidents, as companies reduce maintenance spending and try to find cheaper ways to get manufacturing done. As an example of what a potential havoc an industrial accident might cause, a ship carrying 1000 tons of vinyl acetate monomer, a component of synthetic textiles and paints, sank off the coast of Niigata just today. This particular chemical is believed to cause cancer when found in drinking water. We can only assume that whatever seafood is farmed along the coastline in Niigata, we wouldn't want to be eating any of it over the next 6 months if the ship's load has started leaking. What kind of accidents do we see happening? Anything relating to rusting infrastructure -- with explosions of chemical plants and factory fires at the top of the list. 8. More M&As Because of the polarization of Japanese industry, with the exporters managing to make profits and grow while those serving the domestic market are suffering, the number of M&As between Japanese firms and also involving foreign firms will continue to increase. We think that Chinese firms trying to take over Japanese ones will cause some kind of media backlash within this year, and paranoia about Japan getting bought out and controlled by foreigners will become a national talking point. Actually we're surprised that this hasn't happened already -- attributable, perhaps, to the fact that most of the Chinese acquisitions have been of low-grade or obscure companies. Within our own area of interest, which is new tech/high tech, we think there will be more deals like the Zynga and Groupon deals of 2010. One company we think is ripe for a buy-out, although the parent company isn't hurting at this stage is Dwango's Nico Nico Douga operation -- a kind of Japanese version of Youtube. ...The information janitors/ ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ SHORT TAKES We recommend products and services that you might find interesting or useful while living in Japan. => 1. Hair Loss and Energy -- FO TI One of the major Chinese medicinal herbs outside of Ginseng is Fo Ti. This herb, colloquially called Chinese Knotweed and scientifically known as Polygonum Multiflorum, has not been subject to Western scientific journal-documented human tests, but has been used in China for centuries for hair loss reversal, energy, and cognitive improvement. It is of the same family and thus appears to offer similar benefits to Japanese Knotweed from which Resveratrol is extracted. http://www.iherb.com/Nature-s-Way-Fo-Ti-Root-610-mg-100-Capsules/4331?at=0 * iherb.com referral code -- LOY499 * Pays us a small commission at no extra cost to you. => 2. THE BIG ONE! UNITED AIRLINES TICKETS at MMC! Our United Airlines PAIR of tickets to any United direct destination in the USA or Asia, was won by Melissa Navarrette. Congratulations Melissa! There will be more great prizes from later this month. Becoming a Metropolis Member is as simple as going to the website and signing up for the weekly newsletter. No other obligations. http://blogs.metropolis.co.jp/club/ * 30 prizes scheduled in the next 30 weeks. * No charge to enter. * Simply receive the MMC newsletter to stay in the draw. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** --------- BIOS - Bilingual IT Systems and Support --------- BiOS full-service IT solutions has a new service. Working with our fully licenced temporary dispatch group, we are now able to provide Japan in-country workers for companies not yet registered in Japan. This innovative service is available for companies needing to hire staff for Japanese customers, but who are unable to commit to the expense and infrastructure of maintaining an office in Japan. We take care of all aspects of the employment, contracting, and dispatch -- including management of the employee. For more information on this and other SI and IT services, in English or Japanese: Phone: 03-5773-3090, Email: solutions at biosjp.com Web: www.biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ NEWS - Motor company to expand foreign R&D inside Japan - Advanced garbage separator - Twitter usage over New Year hits record - China funds ramp up purchases of Japanese company shares - Pee-pressure games in the Metro -> Motor company to expand foreign R&D inside Japan Electric motor behemoth Nidec Corporation is setting the tone for future investment in Japan by announcing it will spend JPY15bn on a new Kawasaki-based R&D center, due for completion in 2012 through 2014 (two stages). Nothing unusual in that. But what made us pay attention is that Nidec will bring about 150 researchers from the USA, UK, and India and will make English the dominant language. This is one of the outcomes of Nidec's takeover of Emerson Electric in the USA and its desire to bring Emerson's rare earth-free motor technology to Japan. ***Ed: Nidec is one very smart and motivated company.** (Source: TT commentary from nikkei.com, Jan 8, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/fr/tnks/Nni20110107D07JFN04.htm -> Advanced garbage separator Separating garbage is a big deal in Japan and neighbors keep an eagle eye out for people who can't tell plastic from paper (except in Shibuya-ku, where the two are now burned together). Mitsui Engineering & Shipbuilding and Taziri Company have come up with a machine that can separate raw waste from comustible garbage, which householders are allowed to throw out together. The device is a huge centrifugal drum coupled with a shredder and air pumps. The device uses centrifugal force to retain the raw garbage while blowing the combustibles into a separate chamber. Apparently the machine is so good that it can separate the tea leaves from a disposed tea bag. (Source: TT commentary from nikkei.com, Jan 7, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110106D06JSN03.htm -> Twitter usage over New Year hits record In 2010 the Japanese discovered Twitter and have become a major source of usage for the service worldwide, confirming the fact that Japanese love texting. On New Year's Eve, Japanese users set a global record for tweets on the service, with 6,939 tweets per second just after midnight. In comparison, the USA generated about 3,000 tweets per second. ***Ed: Do we really care?** (Source: TT commentary from pcmag.com, Jan 7, 2011) http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2375378,00.asp -> China funds ramp up purchases of Japanese company shares The free market dictates that the one with money gets to invest where they please, and so unless the Japanese government wants to try to limit foreign investment into its firms, a step towards commercial suicide, it will have to put up with the fact that China-based funds, and particularly government funds, are buying a lot more company shares here. A Chibagin Asset Management study late last year has found that Chinese funds have increased their Japanese corporate holdings by more than 1000% to JPY1.5trn in the 18-month period ending September 2011. Chibagin reckons that at the current rate of investment, the two main government funds will yet again double their holdings to JPY3trn by March this year. ***Ed: Why people care about China funds buying shares, so long as they are not holding controlling positions, is beyond us. The share purchases are of direct benefit to Japanese companies and pose no security threat, although we suppose that the shares could be dumped in times of conflict, causing a potential run for the exit by other shareholders.** (Source: TT commentary from japantoday.com, Jan 8, 2011) http://tinyurl.com/23s2wk8 -> Pee-pressure games in the Metro Only in Japan? In an effort to find new advertising display opportunities, Sega has started testing pressure-controlled toilet games/ads display consoles in mens' urinals at Metro stations around Tokyo, until January 31st. The games are designed to allow male patrons to have a bit of fun and distraction while taking a whizz. Amongst the four games, one measures the strength of urine flow, one allows you to clean a screen with a hose, one allows you to compete against another character trying to flush them away, and the last allows you to try to cause wind to blow up a girl's skirt. ***Ed: None of these games would last long in the West, especially the last one, but gives some insight into what goes here in Japan. Will be interesting if patrons can last the distance of one game...** (Source: TT commentary from wired.com, Jan 7, 2011) http://www.wired.com/gamelife/2011/01/sega-urinal-games/ NOTE: Broken links Many online news sources remove their articles after just a few days of posting them, thus breaking our links -- we apologize for the inconvenience. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** -------- Essential Business Reference in English ---------- If you're a manager or director of a company in Japan, you need these references with detailed explanations in English!!! - Japan Staff Employment Law Guide - 1st Edition Published June, 2010 (JPY 21,000) - Japan Master Tax Guide 2010/11 Published July, 2010 (JPY 18,375) - Japan Corporation Law Guide - 2nd Edition Published November, 2010 (JPY 22,050) *Above prices include tax * As a limited time offer for readers of this newsletter, orders received by November 30 will earn discounts: 1 title: 5% off, more than 2 titles: 10% off. For more details: support at cch.co.jp, call 03-6234-3980. Web: https://www.cch-japan.jp/contents/register/form www.cch-japan.jp ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ CANDIDATE ROUND UP/VACANCIES => BiOS, a Division of the LINC Media group, is actively marketing the following positions for customers setting up or expanding in Japan, as well as other employers of bilinguals. ** HIGHLIGHTED POSITION BiOS is now urgently looking for an experienced Senior Infrastructure Engineer to join the bilingual technical team in Tokyo. The ideal candidate for this role will be someone who has experience in the following areas: ? Working with users to troubleshoot most any issue ? Providing 2nd and 3rd level support ? Administrating servers at client locations ? Coordinating work schedules and visit client sites ? Coordinating with colleagues, vendors and clients The Senior Infrastructure Engineer will work closely with management, being involved in projects, taking an active role in the development of the technical team, provide technical consultation to clients and provide support to other BiOS? technical team members. Remuneration is JPY5.0m ? JPY7.5m depending on your experience and level. ** POSITIONS VACANT - Account Manager, BiOS, JPY3m ? JPY4.5m - Helpdesk Engineer, Medical Devices JPY4m ? JPY5m - Account Manager, Embedded Mobile JPY7m ? JPY10m - Tech Support Analyst, global IT co JPY5m ? JPY6m - Okinawa Wintel Engineer, ibankJPY5m ? JPY6m Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: kenji.sakota at biosjp.com ** BiOS Job Mail Every 2 weeks BiOS sends out a regular communication to its job seeking candidates, called BiOS Job Mail. Every edition carries a list of BiOS's current and most up-to-date vacancies, with each entry featuring a short job description and a direct link to the main entry on the BiOS home page. Regardless of whether you are unemployed and searching, thinking about a career change, or just curious to know if there is something out there that might suit you better, the BiOS Job Mail newsletter is an easy and convenient way for you to stay informed. If you would like to register for the BiOS Job Mail, or to find out more, please email stuart.gibson at biosjp.com. Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: stuart.gibson at biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ UPCOMING EVENTS/ANNOUNCEMENTS ---------------- ICA Event - January 20 ------------------- Speaker: Keith Wilkinson, Google Analytics - Web Marketing & CMS Consultant Title: How Much Is Your Web Site Worth? How to Leverage Web Analytics and Web Marketing! Details: Complete event details at http://www.icajapan.jp/ (RSVP Required) Date: Thursday, January 20, 2011 Time: 6:30 Doors open, Buffet Dinner included and cash bar Cost: 4,000 yen (members), 6,000 yen (non-members) Open to all. Venue is The Foreign Correspondents' Club of Japan. http://www.fccj.or.jp/aboutus/map ----------------------------------------------------------- --------------- Start a Company in Japan ------------------ Entrepreneur's Handbook Seminar 19th of February, 2011 If you have been considering setting up your own company, find out what it takes to make it successful. Terrie Lloyd, founder of over 13 start-up companies in Japan, will be giving an English-language seminar and Q and A on starting up a company in Japan. This is an ideal opportunity to find out what is involved, and to ask specific questions that are not normally answered in business books. All materials are in English and are Japan-focused. For more details: http://www.japaninc.com/entrepreneur_handbook_seminar ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CORRECTIONS/FEEDBACK In this section we run comments and corrections submitted by readers. We encourage you to spot our mistakes and amplify our points, by email, to editors at terrie.com. *** No comments or feedback this week. *********************************************************** END SUBSCRIBERS: 8,730 members as of January 09, 2010 (We purge our list regularly.) +++ ABOUT US STAFF Written by: Terrie Lloyd (terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com) HELP: E-mail Terrie-request at mailman.japaninc.com with the word 'help' in the subject or body (don't include the quotes), and you will get back a message with instructions. FEEDBACK Send letters (Feedback, Inquiries & Information) to the editor to terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com. ADVERTISING INFORMATION For more information on advertising in this newsletter, Contact ads at japaninc.com. SUBSCRIBE Get Terrie's Take by giving your name and email address at http://www.japaninc.com/newsletters/free_sign_up, or go straight to Mailman at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ Copyright 2010 Japan Inc. Communications Inc. ----------------- Japan Inc opens up Japan ---------------- J at pan Inc is Japan's only independently published English- language business website. Authoritatively chronicling online the business trends in Japan, each posting brings you in-depth analysis of business, people and technology in the world's second largest economy. Visit www.japaninc.com for the best business insight on Japan available. ----------------------------------------------------------- -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From terrie at mailman.japaninc.com Sun Jan 16 22:46:41 2011 From: terrie at mailman.japaninc.com (terrie at mailman.japaninc.com) Date: Sun, 16 Jan 2011 22:46:41 +0900 Subject: Terrie's Take 597 -- Will Facebook Fail in Japan? E-biz news from Japan In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: * * * * * * * * * T E R R I E 'S T A K E * * * * * * * A weekly roundup of news & information from Terrie Lloyd. (http://www.terrie.com) General Edition Sunday, January 16, 2010, Issue No. 597 +++ INDEX - What's New - Short Takes - News - Candidate Roundup/Vacancies - Upcoming Events - Corrections/Feedback - News Credits SUBSCRIBE to, UNSUBSCRIBE from Terrie's Take at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take, or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ ---------- PBXL SUPPORTS TELL AND YOU SHOULD TOO ---------- PBXL's corporate responsibility efforts are tightly aligned with our strategic business priorities and integral to our relationships - with clients, employees, and communities. PBXL provides TELL with call center support and service using the latest in Cisco telephony. The Tokyo English Life Line offers free anonymous telephone counseling as well as professional face-to-face counseling for children, families, and individuals. Start the year off right and consider making a donation to support and sustain the Tokyo English Life Line. From all of us at PBXL and TELL, we wish you a prosperous and joyful 2011. Give us a call at 03-4550-1600, shoot us an email at info at pbxl.jp or visit http://en.pbxl.co.jp/ For information about TELL visit http://www.telljp.com/ ------------ PBXL is BUSINESS COMMUNICATIONS -------------- +++ WHAT'S NEW An article in the New York Times and a commentary between a Facebook software engineer and Mark Zuckerberg, have once again kicked off speculation that Facebook is having a tough time here in Japan and looks like it could become a re-play of eBay, MySpace, and various other US internet ventures that have tried to set up here and have failed. The NYT article was quite detailed, revealing that Facebook currently has 2m users registered in Japan, just a tenth of those registered to each of Mixi, Mobage, and Gree. The NYT reporter speculates that while Facebook has as much 60% of all Internet users registered to it in the USA, the hurdles for Facebook to gain decent market share in Japan may be insurmountable. The biggest reason given for Facebook's poor showing so far is that it requires (theoretically anyway) the user to use their real name and is set up for the user's real persona to be represented on the web. This is the antipathy of what Japanese users want from the Internet, which is anonymity and the ability to participate in forums without fearing identification for what might otherwise not be socially acceptable behavior or comments. A recent web survey found that over 80% of Japanese users in fact reluctant to use their real names on social media sites, so there is something to this argument. However, the fact is that you can easily use a pseudonym on Facebook if you want to, and there doesn't seem to be an active policing against doing so by Facebook. So what are the other reasons for Facebook's poor showing to date? We'd say that the biggest impediments are being late to market, it's a lot harder when you have to catch up with 3 local communities already sitting on 65m subscribers between them, and the lack of need by Japanese users to interconnect across borders. Of course there are some internationalized Japanese, and we imagine that many of them are already on Facebook and connecting with their friends abroad. But they are probably using the site for the convenience of their overseas friends, not because it has stronger appeal to them for local daily usage. The fact is that currently Facebook doesn't offer anything superior to what is already out there, and so why should people change? [Continued below...] ----------------- Refreshing Your Website ----------------- Do you have a sophisticated website or Intranet site that is hard to maintain and needs an engineer every time you want to make a change? Maybe you should standardize on an open source Content Management System -- one which is widely known and supported, and which lets your staff do most of the updates themselves -- thus reducing your website maintenance budget. LINC Media's Electronic Commerce team builds WordPress and Drupal CMS-driven websites that are quick to set up, reliable, and most importantly give your marketing team the capability of doing their own updates. Our systems include year-round technical support and content support if you want it, all for a competitive flat monthly fee. To find out more, ask about our WEB PARTNERS program -- backed by a solid fully-bilingual team with strong credentials and a desire to please. Contact: nana.yamaguchi at lincmedia.co.jp for details. ----------------------------------------------------------- [...Article continues] But we bet that Facebook won't stay small in Japan for long. If you follow the news, you can see a pattern emerging of alliances and leveraging that will gradually ease Facebook into the fabric of Japanese web users. In the last few months there has been an alliance for example with Recruit, Japan's leading free paper publisher (Hot Pepper and various other titles). The tie-up allows college students to find jobs by networking with graduates from their schools. This is a clever and well-timed idea because there is a vacuum in the school friends network sector. There used to be a major schools connection network called Yubi-Toma, but it went through a scandal and although relaunched last year, isn't trusted by your average netizen. Since Recruit is deep into recruiting, this tie-up offers a nice connection to its main business, and we assume will create revenue for both parties. Then of course also late last year was the market entry of games creator, Zynga. That company's Facebook game, Farmville, has a huge following and may do well here, creating the "pull" that Facebook needs to win users. Games are clearly the major attraction for social networks in Japan, and both Gree and Mobage (by DeNA) have eclipsed Mixi, a more traditional diary-based SNS site, because of their freemium model games. Can Zynga create more hits that will resonate with Japanese users? Given that Zynga took over a Japanese company which is already producing titles, we think it is only a matter of time. Another alliance, which had us scratching our heads, was with Mixi itself, the entity that Facebook in theory would depose if it became successful in Japan. In late October, the Nikkei ran a short article in which Facebook said it was "partnering" with Mixi to allow users of each site to share information, links, and other digital assets. Maybe in this way, Facebook hopes to offer Japanese users a way around the "real name" policy? Actually, we think not. More likely this is a pragmatic way for Mixi to open up a door way to international users, while Facebook is probably pursuing a policy in Japan of being friends with anyone who will have it. OR, just maybe, this is a deeper relationship and we'll read about Facebook buying out Mixi in the months to come. It wouldn't surprise us if this happens, and would certainly pole vault Facebook into the main market. In any case, Facebook really only opened its Japan office late last year, and so it's early days to be speculating what the Facebook strategy will be. If we were them, we would attack the lesser culturally specific portion of the Social Media market first, which is games and mobile applications. Facebook has plenty of resources to be able to do this, and now with a JPY5trn market valuation, they have plenty of willing partners as well. We're sure that Softbank at least, being an investor in Zynga, will be working with Facebook to line up those partners into some kind of alliance. This could get interesting... ************* Lastly, if any readers fancy themselves as the Mark Zuckerberg of 2020 in Japan, and need some pointers on how to go about it, we're happy to announce that our next Entrepreneur's Business Handbook Seminar program is fast approaching. The seminar, presented by your's truly, goes through all aspects of setting up, running, and selling a company. We include how to raise funds, how to find a good business niche and make money from it, and what kind of valuations you can expect once you're ready to sell. The seminar will be on February 19th, more details in the UPCOMING EVENTS section below. ...The information janitors/ ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ SHORT TAKES We recommend products and services that you might find interesting or useful while living in Japan. => 1. Non-Sodium Lauryl Sulfate -- NEEM TOOTHPASTE Recently our family started using herbal toothpastes because they are supposed to have less chemicals and if swallowed cause less ill effects on kids' bodies. However, we have quickly come to realize that Tom's of Maine and similar toothpastes are loaded with Sodium Lauryl Sulfate (SLS), a foaming agent which at very least is known to cause mouth ulcers, and at worst could be carcinogenic. SLS in shampoos may be acceptable, but not for use inside your mouth. The other issue with herbal non-SLS toothpastes is that they almost uniformly come in one flavor, mouth-puckering mint, which kids can't take. We were happy and now very satisfied to find Organix South's Neem Toothpaste, which comes in a great Neem/Cinnamon flavor. This product uses an eclectic selection of Indian Ayurvedic and western herbs that do work to make your teeth clean. http://bit.ly/gK1XLF * iherb.com referral code -- LOY499 * Pays us a small commission at no extra cost to you. => 2. MI Performance shoes from Adidas This coming week, one lucky MMC member will win a pair of MI Performance customized shoes courtesy of adidas. Last week's prize of a night's stay for two at the Hotel Avanshell Akasaka courtesy of Hotel Avanshell Akasaka was won by Joe Peters. Congratulations Joe! Becoming a Metropolis Member is as simple as going to the website and signing up for the weekly newsletter. No other obligations. http://blogs.metropolis.co.jp/club/ * 30 prizes scheduled in the next 30 weeks. * No charge to enter. * Simply receive the MMC newsletter to stay in the draw. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** --------- BIOS - Bilingual IT Systems and Support --------- BiOS full-service IT solutions has a new service. Working with our fully licenced temporary dispatch group, we are now able to provide Japan in-country workers for companies not yet registered in Japan. This innovative service is available for companies needing to hire staff for Japanese customers, but who are unable to commit to the expense and infrastructure of maintaining an office in Japan. We take care of all aspects of the employment, contracting, and dispatch -- including management of the employee. For more information on this and other SI and IT services, in English or Japanese: Phone: 03-5773-3090, Email: solutions at biosjp.com Web: www.biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ NEWS - Daikin may buy US rival - CDMA iPhone on the way? - Innocent man gets JPY92m compensation - Suntory has JPY300bn M&A war chest - 1.41m families on welfare -> Daikin may buy US rival Osaka-based aircon maker Daikin has announced that it is considering a massive US$4bn takeover of US rival maker Goodman Global. The company is one of a number of bidders for the Goodman business, after its owners, private equity firm Hellman & Friedman, put the business up for sale. The purchase would make Daikin the largest air conditioning maker in the world, edging out another US company, United Technologies. (Source: TT commentary from reuters.com, Jan 14, 2011) http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE70D14V20110114 -> CDMA iPhone on the way? According to Taiwan parts supplier insiders, it appears that Apple may be preparing a CDMA iPhone handset for sale in China, Japan, and South Korea. This would be interesting news for Japan as the only CDMA carrier is KDDI, a major competitor to Softbank. ***Ed: Certainly we'd be overjoyed to see a carrier compete with Softbank. Their service is so darned slow -- we are now using an eMobile portable WiFi/3G hub to get an alternative way on to the web.** (Source: TT commentary from electronista.com, Jan 12, 2011) http://bit.ly/goeFnL -> Innocent man gets JPY92m compensation Probably no amount of money will make up for the 17 years taken from 64-year old Toshikazu Sugaya, who was imprisoned in 1993 for life for the alleged murder of a 4-year old girl abducted from a Pachinko parlor. Sugaya was convicted on the basis of DNA found in the toddler's underwear, but he protested his innocence and finally managed to get the Tokyo High Court to re-test the DNA sample in 2006. Sure enough, it wasn't his... He is to receive JPY92m in compensation, representing the maximum possible compensation allowed by the government. ***Ed: If there was ever a case for Japan to stop imposing the death sentence, this would be it.** (Source: AFP article at google.com, Jan 13, 2011) http://tinyurl.com/6hz8dr7 -> Suntory has JPY300bn M&A war chest Suntory Holdings CEO has revealed that his company has a JPY300bn war chest available for acquisitions, following a failed merger attempt with Kirin back in 2009-2010. The company's last major acquisition was France's Orangina Schweppes. The CEO has said that he wants to raise income levels earned overseas to 25%, up from 23% today, and to move overall sales to JPY2trn by 2013, up from JPY1.75trn today. ***Ed: It will be interesting to see what kind of companies Suntory will go for. So far they're active in the "junk drinks" sector, but there are some very interesting healthy drinks makers on the rise in the USA and Europe that could be good targets. Also interesting to see just how much cash some of these major Japanese companies have for global purchases.** (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Jan 14, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110113D13JFA17.htm -> 1.41m families on welfare There are plenty of people still doing it tough in Japan. According to a new Welfare Ministry report, there are a record 1.41m households now living on welfare, up 9,400 from September, and 136,000 more than 2009. The households represented 1.96m actual people. The Ministry says the major cause of the rise is the ongoing loss of jobs in the labor market. As a result, it will spend JPY3.5bn this year to help people on welfare re-enter the workforce. (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Jan 12, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110112D12JF678.htm NOTE: Broken links Many online news sources remove their articles after just a few days of posting them, thus breaking our links -- we apologize for the inconvenience. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** -------- Essential Business Reference in English ---------- If you're a manager or director of a company in Japan, you need these references with detailed explanations in English!!! - Japan Staff Employment Law Guide - 1st Edition Published June, 2010 (JPY 21,000) - Japan Master Tax Guide 2010/11 Published July, 2010 (JPY 18,375) - Japan Corporation Law Guide - 2nd Edition Published November, 2010 (JPY 22,050) *Above prices include tax * As a limited time offer for readers of this newsletter, orders received by November 30 will earn discounts: 1 title: 5% off, more than 2 titles: 10% off. For more details: support at cch.co.jp, call 03-6234-3980. Web: https://www.cch-japan.jp/contents/register/form www.cch-japan.jp ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ CANDIDATE ROUND UP/VACANCIES => BiOS, a Division of the LINC Media group, is actively marketing the following positions for customers setting up or expanding in Japan, as well as other employers of bilinguals. ** HIGHLIGHTED POSITION BiOS is currently looking for an experienced helpdesk engineer to join an international medical equipment company located in Bunkyo-Ku, Tokyo. The successful candidate will be responsible for supporting end users, predominantly in a Japanese language environment. The work includes 2nd level support and Laptop/SmartPhone setup, network/server administration, etc. At least 2 years of helpdesk/desktop experience, with wide knowledge of system administration experience is required. The qualified candidate would also have business level English and native level Japanese. Salary: JPY4m ? JPY5m per year, based on your experience. ** POSITIONS VACANT - Snr Infra Engineer, BiOS, JPY5m ? JPY7.5m - Network Engineer, global IT co, JPY7m ? JPY10m - Staffing Consultant, BiOS, JPY2.5m ? JPY3m + comm. - Sales Team Account Manager, BiOS, JPY3.5m ? 4.5m + comm. - Media Management Mgr (DC), iBank, JPY 4m ? JPY5m Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: kenji.sakota at biosjp.com ** BiOS Job Mail Every 2 weeks BiOS sends out a regular communication to its job seeking candidates, called BiOS Job Mail. Every edition carries a list of BiOS's current and most up-to-date vacancies, with each entry featuring a short job description and a direct link to the main entry on the BiOS home page. Regardless of whether you are unemployed and searching, thinking about a career change, or just curious to know if there is something out there that might suit you better, the BiOS Job Mail newsletter is an easy and convenient way for you to stay informed. If you would like to register for the BiOS Job Mail, or to find out more, please email stuart.gibson at biosjp.com. Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: stuart.gibson at biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ UPCOMING EVENTS/ANNOUNCEMENTS ---------------- ICA Event - January 20 ------------------- Speaker: Keith Wilkinson, Google Analytics - Web Marketing & CMS Consultant Title: How Much Is Your Web Site Worth? How to Leverage Web Analytics and Web Marketing! Details: Complete event details at http://www.icajapan.jp/ (RSVP Required) Date: Thursday, January 20, 2011 Time: 6:30 Doors open, Buffet Dinner included and cash bar Cost: 4,000 yen (members), 6,000 yen (non-members) Open to all. Venue is The Foreign Correspondents' Club of Japan. http://www.fccj.or.jp/aboutus/map ----------------------------------------------------------- --------------- Start a Company in Japan ------------------ Entrepreneur's Handbook Seminar 19th of February, 2011 If you have been considering setting up your own company, find out what it takes to make it successful. Terrie Lloyd, founder of over 13 start-up companies in Japan, will be giving an English-language seminar and Q and A on starting up a company in Japan. This is an ideal opportunity to find out what is involved, and to ask specific questions that are not normally answered in business books. All materials are in English and are Japan-focused. For more details: http://www.japaninc.com/entrepreneur_handbook_seminar ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CORRECTIONS/FEEDBACK In this section we run comments and corrections submitted by readers. We encourage you to spot our mistakes and amplify our points, by email, to editors at terrie.com. *** No comments or feedback this week. *********************************************************** END SUBSCRIBERS: 8,729 members as of January 16, 2010 (We purge our list regularly.) +++ ABOUT US STAFF Written by: Terrie Lloyd (terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com) HELP: E-mail Terrie-request at mailman.japaninc.com with the word 'help' in the subject or body (don't include the quotes), and you will get back a message with instructions. FEEDBACK Send letters (Feedback, Inquiries & Information) to the editor to terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com. ADVERTISING INFORMATION For more information on advertising in this newsletter, Contact ads at japaninc.com. SUBSCRIBE Get Terrie's Take by giving your name and email address at http://www.japaninc.com/newsletters/free_sign_up, or go straight to Mailman at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ Copyright 2010 Japan Inc. Communications Inc. ----------------- Japan Inc opens up Japan ---------------- J at pan Inc is Japan's only independently published English- language business website. Authoritatively chronicling online the business trends in Japan, each posting brings you in-depth analysis of business, people and technology in the world's second largest economy. Visit www.japaninc.com for the best business insight on Japan available. ----------------------------------------------------------- -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From terrie at mailman.japaninc.com Mon Jan 24 09:22:47 2011 From: terrie at mailman.japaninc.com (Terrie's Take) Date: Mon, 24 Jan 2011 09:22:47 +0900 Subject: Terrie's Take 598 -- Why You Will Retire at 70, e-biz news from Japan Message-ID: * * * * * * * * * T E R R I E 'S T A K E * * * * * * * A weekly roundup of news & information from Terrie Lloyd. (http://www.terrie.com) General Edition Sunday, January 23, 2011, Issue No. 598 +++ INDEX - What's New - Short Takes - News - Candidate Roundup/Vacancies - Upcoming Events - Corrections/Feedback - News Credits SUBSCRIBE to, UNSUBSCRIBE from Terrie's Take at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take, or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ ---------- PBXL SUPPORTS TELL AND YOU SHOULD TOO ---------- PBXL's corporate responsibility efforts are tightly aligned with our strategic business priorities and integral to our relationships - with clients, employees, and communities. PBXL provides TELL with call center support and service using the latest in Cisco telephony. The Tokyo English Life Line offers free anonymous telephone counseling as well as professional face-to-face counseling for children, families, and individuals. Start the year off right and consider making a donation to support and sustain the Tokyo English Life Line. From all of us at PBXL and TELL, we wish you a prosperous and joyful 2011. Give us a call at 03-4550-1600, shoot us an email at info at pbxl.jp or visit http://en.pbxl.co.jp/ For information about TELL visit http://www.telljp.com/ ------------ PBXL is BUSINESS COMMUNICATIONS -------------- +++ WHAT'S NEW One of the predictions we made at the start of this year was that Prime Minister Naoto Kan would survive his year-end popularity slump and emerge with a much stronger agenda for dealing with Japan's many economic and social ills. Certainly the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade agreement appears to be one of the tools he plans to use to forge a reputation for himself and his government as forward thinkers and a party of action. TPP is a bold gamble, but after a long period of DPJ inaction and consequent disappointment by the electorate, it's a bet worth making. If he is successful in quelling the protests from the agricultural sector and farming prefectural governments, and gets the TPP signed, then he may just be able to capture the public's imagination about how change is once again on its way -- helping the DPJ carry the day at the next general elections. Don't underestimate Mr Kan, is what we think. Another area the PM is drawing a bead on is that of consumption tax and pensions. His cabinet are doing their best to float trial balloons one after the other, to get the media and consequently the public discussing what appears to be an inevitable occurrence -- the raising of the Consumption Tax and other painful measures to bring Japan's fiscal house into order. The way Kan is going about this is an indication that he and his government have learned a big lesson from their thrashing in last year's elections. There is a lot more grassroots discussion about the alternatives and consensus is being built up upon a base of recommendations and published supportive statements from a diverse range of business and financial organizations rather than just from the DPJ itself. [Continued below...] ----------- LINC Media Group companies move --------------- Readers may recall that in TT581 we wrote about now being a good time to move. We wound up taking our own advice and saving a whopping 50% in rent costs in the process. As a result, the following LINC Media related companies will be located at this address from Monday, January 24th, 2011. Please note also the changed general phone number. New Address: Roppongi OG Building, 1-3-4 Nishi-Azabu, Minato-ku, Tokyo 106-0031 TEL: 03-4588-2245 (General) Companies moving: - LINC Media Inc. - BiOS Inc. - Metropolis KK - Japan Inc. Holdings KK - Japan Inc. Communications (ACCJ Journal publisher) - MetroWorks Inc. - Champion Visions Japan - Ohio Department of Development Japan Office - MyHR Inc. ----------------------------------------------------------- [...Article continues] One of the big questions being asked in the media is whether the nation should raise premiums on a decreasing working population to pay for pensions or should it continue the current practice of subsidizing the ever-increasing payments from the public purse? If public funding option is desired, then more money has to come from somewhere, and since the foreign credit markets are too expensive and local government bond sales are being forecast to start drying up, consumption tax is one of the few reliable sources of additional income. Thus consumption tax MUST go up. Our guess is that it will ihappen shortly after the next general elections, which we think will be held either later this year or ideally next year. One way the PM is pushing his program to get the public to accept the inevitable is to appoint others who are better at handling the media and capturing the public's attention than perhaps Kan can do. Just this year he appointed a fiscal hawk, Economic and fiscal policy minister Kaoru Yosano to tackle the subject, which Yosano has lost no time in doing. We're not sure why having Yosano start the tough discussion on taxes to come is better than Kan doing it -- maybe a cabinet minister sounds more credible? Whatever the reason, the media and public seem to be coming around to the idea that consumption taxes will increase. A recent Kyodo news poll found that 54.3% of people agree with the necessity of a consumption tax increase. It helps that various prominent foreign financial analysts at Goldman Sachs and more recently at Citibank are saying that in the mid-term, the chance of Japan having a credit default similar to those in Greece and Portugal is increasingly possible. So will the pensions system be maintained by funneling cash from increased consumption tax? Hearing the media tell the story, a 15% consumption tax rate will be a panacea that will fix the pension system for some time to come. But in fact, Yosano and others in the DPJ prefer NOT to use consumption tax. Instead, he wants to put up the retirement age and focus on premiums (i.e., user pays), or at least a combination of that and money from the public purse. Yesterday, Saturday, the Nikkei reported Yosano openly speculating that Japan's retirement age needed to rise from the current 65 years old to something higher. Of course, like any good politician, he denied later that there was any actual plan by the government to increase the retirement age. But the suggestion has been tabled, and like a good trial balloon should, it got attention AND it didn't get shot down. So why does Yosano not want to use the consumption tax increase to fund the pensions? Probably because the money is already ear-marked for a more important reason: to cover the government's huge short-falls between tax income and outgoings. Apparently interest payments and pension and other entitlement spending costs will balloon out over the next 10 years to the extent where, according to Nomura Securities' chief public finance analyst, the consumption tax will have to go up to 20% or more to achieve primary balance. In other words the consumption tax cookie jar isn't going to be big enough to cover both existing social programs and an expanded population of retirees. So if pension support can't come from a consumption tax increase then the only serious alternative is to put off the start of pensions for retirees as Yosano suggests. Instead of 65, we can easily see the government raising the age to 70. The fact is that people are a lot more healthy and active at 70 these days than they were some decades ago, and working until then is not inconceivable -- although laws will need to be introduced to make firms keep their aging staff. Actually, it is interesting to note that Germany has already decided to raise its retirement age from 65 to 67, and the UK plans to raise its retirement age to 68 as well. In this respect Japan is not an isolated case. Just it needs to push forward with the tough medicine and get it out of the way. So if you're nearing retirement age, don't hold your breath. Instead you'd better start focusing on your health and achieving some longevity, because you'll be going to the office for a few more years yet... :-) ************* Lastly, we have some highly interesting reader feedback in the Corrections/Feedback section below, on Facebook's activities here in Japan. One of the great things about writing Terrie's Take is that we get real insider feedback that helps us navigate the tricky waters of speculation and joining the dots for Japanese commerce news. Then there's our Start Your Own Business seminar, on Feb 19th. More details in the Upcoming Events section below. ...The information janitors/ ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ SHORT TAKES Some readers have asked why we are running these health products messages. Just more ads? Well, no. Actually, we use these products ourselves, to stay competitive working and playing in Tokyo and know them to be effective. It's our way of sharing insider tips with our readers. Of course if you quote our reference number at iHerb.com, then we'd be happy about that as well... => 1. ALC/ALA for Energy/Learning This is one of those supplements you take for "insurance" since you can't tell on a day-to-day basis what kind of effect it is having on you. However, preliminary animal studies show that a mixture of Acetyl L-carnitine (ALC) and alpha-lipoic acid (ALA) support your metabolic functions at a cell level, meaning more energy for people who work out a lot, and improved learning capabilities as you age. http://bit.ly/fL4VAK * iherb.com referral code -- LOY499 * Pays us a small commission at no extra cost to you. => 2. United Airlines Tickets for Two up for grabs This coming week, one lucky MMC member will win the grand prize for this quarter: a pair of tickets to any United direct destination in the USA or Asia courtesy of United Airlines. We've given away 3 pairs of tickets so far, and you could be next. Also, our congratulations to Bernd Giesecke who won the Adidas MI Performance customized shoes courtesy of Adidas. Becoming a Metropolis Member is as simple as going to the website and signing up for the weekly newsletter. No other obligations. http://blogs.metropolis.co.jp/club/ * Many more prizes scheduled in coming weeks. * No charge to enter. * Simply receive the MMC newsletter to stay in the draw. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** --------- BIOS - Bilingual IT Systems and Support --------- BiOS full-service IT solutions has a new service. Working with our fully licenced temporary dispatch group, we are now able to provide Japan in-country workers for companies not yet registered in Japan. This innovative service is available for companies needing to hire staff for Japanese customers, but who are unable to commit to the expense and infrastructure of maintaining an office in Japan. We take care of all aspects of the employment, contracting, and dispatch -- including management of the employee. For more information on this and other SI and IT services, in English or Japanese: Phone: (03) 4588-2220, Email: solutions at biosjp.com Web: www.biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ NEWS - Son proposes web access on subways - TPP's upside: food exports - Rakuten still growing strongly - NEC to cede PC business to Lenovo J/V? - Japan is consumer electronics net importer -> Son proposes web access on subways Softbank's Masayoshi Son is nothing if not an ideas man. He has proposed to the Tokyo Metropolitan Government, which directly and indirectly owns a good chunk of the subways flowing below it, to provide a devices network that allows commuters to access their email and the web while between stations underground. According to Son, worker productivity may be boosted significantly if company employees could do email while on the train. Apparently Tokyo-to is viewing the proposal with interest. ***Ed: Of course this ignores the fact that email access can be had at every station and for about 100m leaving the station, so interruptions while annoying are limited to less than a minute between stations. Further, if we were Tokyo-to, we'd open the idea up for bid. Whomever got the contract could potentially enjoy the business of more than 20m commuters daily. No wonder Mr. Son is interested.** (Source: TT commentary from japantimes.co.jp, Jan 21, 2011) http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nb20110121a3.html -> TPP's upside: food exports The Ministry of Agriculture may be fighting a rearguard action against the TPP trade agreement, but at the same time is moving forward with an export strategy for the nation's food producers that should see them improve their situation. The Ministry will be publishing in March a long-term growth strategy for food exports. Japan currently exports JPY1.2trn of food products to Asia's approx. 1bn middle class and wealthy consumers in 2008. Given that the number of middle class and wealthy consumers is expected to swell to around 1.9bn people by 2020, the expectation is that Japanese high-grade food exports will be in big demand and will rise to at least JPY2trn by the same date. ***Ed: If one follows what is happening with the sake industry, where struggling producers are finding better markets for their brands overseas than in Japan, and take into account that for food producers the number of actual domestic customers started shrinking from 3 years ago, it is not hard to see that export is really the only hope for Japan's farming sector. TPP will accelerate this process.** (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Jan 23, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110122D22JFF06.htm -> Rakuten still growing strongly Market saturation will happen at some point, but just when doesn't seem to be an issue for Rakuten and its famous online shopping mall just yet. The company is expected to report another year of record profits in April, thanks to a very strong third quarter last year. The company is likely to see sales increase by 17% to JPY350bn, and profits up by 15% to JPY65bn. The marketplace place business had more than 35,000 merchants at the end of 2010, also up 15% on the year. (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Jan 22, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110121D21JFA03.htm -> NEC to cede PC business to Lenovo J/V? Although both parties appear to be denying any actual discussions at present, the media is busy reporting that NEC will move its PC business into a joint venture with Lenovo. The nature of the deal is unknown at this stage, but media speculation is that the deal will not be a straight sell-out of the PC business to Lenovo as was the case with IBM in 2004. Rather, the new j/v would be responsible for R&D, production, support, etc., while the products continue to carry the NEC name. NEC has done several similar deals to slim down its overall operations in recent years (Renesas, also a j/v with Casio and Hitachi for cell phones). (Source: TT commentary from online.wsj.com, Jan 21, 2011) http://tinyurl.com/4fw57hw -> Japan is consumer electronics net importer In a sign of the times, the Japan Electronics and Information Technology Industries Association (JEITA) has released data showing that Japan became a net importer of consumer electronics goods in 2010. The country exported JPY762bn of consumer electronics and imported JPY769bn, a net deficit of JPY7bn. On the positive side, industry experts note that many of the imports were Japanese brand products manufactured in low-cost locations abroad. ***Ed: This point about globalized companies no longer being counted as exporters from Japan is of course a very interesting one. There should be a study on the net trade value and income (not just Japan-reported income) for all Japanese company activity overseas. Such a report would give pause to the doomsayers about Japan.** (Source: TT commentary from ft.com, Jan 21, 2011) http://tinyurl.com/45t8lb2 NOTE: Broken links Many online news sources remove their articles after just a few days of posting them, thus breaking our links -- we apologize for the inconvenience. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** -------- Essential Business Reference in English ---------- If you're a manager or director of a company in Japan, you need these references with detailed explanations in English!!! - Japan Staff Employment Law Guide - 1st Edition Published June, 2010 (JPY 21,000) - Japan Master Tax Guide 2010/11 Published July, 2010 (JPY 18,375) - Japan Corporation Law Guide - 2nd Edition Published November, 2010 (JPY 22,050) *Above prices include tax * As a limited time offer for readers of this newsletter, orders received by November 30 will earn discounts: 1 title: 5% off, more than 2 titles: 10% off. For more details: support at cch.co.jp, call 03-6234-3980. Web: https://www.cch-japan.jp/contents/register/form www.cch-japan.jp ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ CANDIDATE ROUND UP/VACANCIES => BiOS, a Division of the LINC Media group, is actively marketing the following positions for customers setting up or expanding in Japan, as well as other employers of bilinguals. ** HIGHLIGHTED POSITION BiOS is currently looking for an experienced helpdesk engineer to join an international medical equipment company located in Bunkyo-Ku, Tokyo. A successful candidate will be responsible for supporting end users, predominantly Japanese language environment, with not only limited to 2nd level support, but also support including; Laptop/SmartPhone setup, network/server administration, etc. At least 2 years of helpdesk/desktop experience, with wide knowledge of system administration experience is required. The qualified candidate would also have business level English and native level Japanese. Salary: JPY4m ? JPY5m per year, based on your experience. ** POSITIONS VACANT - Snr Infra Engineer, BiOS, JPY5m ? JPY7.5m - Network Engineer, global IT co, JPY7m ? JPY10m - Staffing Consultant, BiOS, JPY2.5m ? JPY3m + comm. - Sales Team Account Manager, BiOS, JPY3.5m ? 4.5m + comm. - Media Management Mgr (DC), iBank, JPY 4m ? JPY5m Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: kenji.sakota at biosjp.com ** BiOS Job Mail Every 2 weeks BiOS sends out a regular communication to its job seeking candidates, called BiOS Job Mail. Every edition carries a list of BiOS's current and most up-to-date vacancies, with each entry featuring a short job description and a direct link to the main entry on the BiOS home page. Regardless of whether you are unemployed and searching, thinking about a career change, or just curious to know if there is something out there that might suit you better, the BiOS Job Mail newsletter is an easy and convenient way for you to stay informed. If you would like to register for the BiOS Job Mail, or to find out more, please email stuart.gibson at biosjp.com. Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: stuart.gibson at biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ UPCOMING EVENTS/ANNOUNCEMENTS ----------------- NLP Gets You Ahead ---------------------- Get tougher, Get smarter and Control your mind. Learn NLP Core Skills in two days, in English. Master NLP Core Skills to sit in the driver's seat of your life, and achieve your personal goals. The seminar room is just 5 minutes on foot from JR Shinjuku station (south exit). Visit www.nlp-mines.com or email info at nlp-mines.com. Tel: 080-6635-8466. ----------------------------------------------------------- --------------- Start a Company in Japan ------------------ Entrepreneur's Handbook Seminar 19th of February, 2011 If you have been considering setting up your own company, find out what it takes to make it successful. Terrie Lloyd, founder of over 13 start-up companies in Japan, will be giving an English-language seminar and Q and A on starting up a company in Japan. This is an ideal opportunity to find out what is involved, and to ask specific questions that are not normally answered in business books. All materials are in English and are Japan-focused. For more details: http://www.japaninc.com/entrepreneur_handbook_seminar ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CORRECTIONS/FEEDBACK In this section we run comments and corrections submitted by readers. We encourage you to spot our mistakes and amplify our points, by email, to editors at terrie.com. *** Greenpeace, not Peter Bethune In TT595 and TT583 we incorrectly identified whale activist Peter Bethune as a member of Greenpeace. While he once was, he has long since split from that organization and founded the Sea Shepherd organization. We regret the error and appreciate Greenpeace pointing it out. *** TT597 Facebook Japan comments Reader: Thanks for another great edition of Terries Take. I deeply appreciate each and every one. Just wanted to offer a few corrections and comments on the Facebook article. First, the Facebook Japan office was set up in about March 2010. It remained undercover for a while before the country growth manager and his colleague began leaving the office to develop relationships with bigger brands like Recruit. They also have three software engineers from Palo Alto here in Tokyo, who helped sharpen the mobile platform and develop the Connection Search functionality. Regarding the Mixi partnership, which you mentioned scratching your head over: this is not actually a partnership like one would imagine. It was Facebook integrating an already available Mixi API that other services had also been using. The Nikkei story was later proven to be misleading in that sense - to my knowledge there was actually no direct conversation between Mixi and Facebook on this feature. As far as a Facebook buyout of Mixi - I think it would be incredibly unlikely. Mixi users not only tend to use pseudonyms but have photo albums without photos of themselves, and friend networks that consist not of offline friends but ones made online. While similarities exist between the services I think some of the nuances in terms of use and organization of user information makes the two services pretty incompatible. Facebook in Japan is really on what I can only describe as a "noble mission". They're fighting to break into the Japanese SNS space on their terms and their terms alone. Zuck wont budge on things like people registering with real names and using real profile photos - Japan will not get an exception from that underlying culture. I can't say if this is smart or stupid. *********************************************************** END SUBSCRIBERS: 8,735 members as of January 24, 2010 (We purge our list regularly.) +++ ABOUT US STAFF Written by: Terrie Lloyd (terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com) HELP: E-mail Terrie-request at mailman.japaninc.com with the word 'help' in the subject or body (don't include the quotes), and you will get back a message with instructions. FEEDBACK Send letters (Feedback, Inquiries & Information) to the editor to terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com. ADVERTISING INFORMATION For more information on advertising in this newsletter, Contact ads at japaninc.com. SUBSCRIBE Get Terrie's Take by giving your name and email address at http://www.japaninc.com/newsletters/free_sign_up, or go straight to Mailman at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ Copyright 2011 Japan Inc. Communications Inc. ----------------- Japan Inc opens up Japan ---------------- J at pan Inc is Japan's only independently published English- language business website. Authoritatively chronicling online the business trends in Japan, each posting brings you in-depth analysis of business, people and technology in the world's second largest economy. Visit www.japaninc.com for the best business insight on Japan available. ----------------------------------------------------------- -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From terrie at mailman.japaninc.com Sun Jan 30 23:36:06 2011 From: terrie at mailman.japaninc.com (Terrie's Take) Date: Sun, 30 Jan 2011 23:36:06 +0900 Subject: Terrie's Take 599 -- Rate of Pensioner Shoplifting Surges, e-biz news from Japan Message-ID: * * * * * * * * * T E R R I E 'S T A K E * * * * * * * A weekly roundup of news & information from Terrie Lloyd. (http://www.terrie.com) General Edition Sunday, January 30, 2011, Issue No. 599 +++ INDEX - What's New - Short Takes - News - Candidate Roundup/Vacancies - Upcoming Events - Corrections/Feedback - News Credits SUBSCRIBE to, UNSUBSCRIBE from Terrie's Take at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take, or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ ---------- UPGRADE TODAY TO PBXL IP TELEPHONY ---------- PBXL has the solution for your office. PBXL will purchase and dispose of your outdated, unsupported phone system and provide you with state of the art Cisco VoIP telephony. PBXL provides the features and flexibility your business needs to compete including computer telephony, iPhone integration, proactive monitoring, and bundled support and maintenance. For additional information call us anytime at 03-4550-1600, e-mail us at info at pbxl.jp or visit http://en.pbxl.co.jp/ ----------- PBXL is BUSINESS COMMUNICATIONS ------------ +++ WHAT'S NEW Over the last couple of years, both the foreign and Japanese press have been carrying stories about more and more seniors being driven to shoplifting because of the economy and other factors. The situation seems to be getting a lot worse, and the National Police Agency (NPA) released a statement this week saying that a full 27,362 people aged 65 or older were arrested for shoplifting last year. This rate of arrests has the oldsters level-pegging with teenagers, the nation's traditional shoplifters. This number is quite significant, in that not only has it doubled in the last 10 years, but also because at 20% of the population, those aged 65 or older now comprise 26% of the total number of shoplifters apprehended by police. This is disproportionate, especially given that this is a generation that learned respect and obedience the hard way. Actually, you'd think that in a relatively tolerant society like Japan that many of these aged petty offenders would simply be let off with a warning and some sort of supervision, and indeed that is happening. Most get a suspended sentence and are told not to come back. Unfortunately, the number of recidivists is climbing, and now about 16% of the prison population is 60 or older -- most being in there for stealing. So why are the elderly are turning to shoplifting? A 2009 Tokyo Metropolitan Police study of shoplifters found that almost 24% of pensioner arrests said that loneliness drove them to it. We're not sure exactly how loneliness drives old people to shoplifting directly, surely stalking or running out of bars before paying the bill would be a more likely crime. But we suppose that if being alone means no emotional and financial support, then of course someone without that support might resort to measures that make sense to them even as it wouldn't to friends and family who would otherwise try to stop them. [Continued below...] -------------- Cut your communications costs -------------- How do you cut your communication bill while increasing its quality? Join our seminar hosted by Computec, Cisco, KDDI and Skype Japan to find out! Reduce operating cost by implementing Skype technology SkyGateay into your IP phone system and SmartPhone! Learn from the pros why 'SkyGateway' should be your preferred service. For more information, please fill out our contact form at http://newweb.computec.co.jp/jp/news/seminar20110224.html TEL: 03-5225-7017 *Seminar is held in Japanese.* ------------------------------------------------------------ [...Article continues] Certainly basic need is a big part of shoplifting for the elderly. In the Tokyo Police study, 55.4% of aged shoplifters were single and 40% were living alone. Apparently 80% of the items they stole were worth JPY1,000 or less, and tended to be either food (80% of cases) or clothing. Given that some of these elderly are trying to survive on a basic pension of around JPY80,000 a month (what a divorced wife, widow, or long-term unemployed person might be on if they had not contributed to the pension system sufficiently to qualify for additional benefits), it's no wonder that some people might be turning to other ways to support themselves. We think another possible reason for the upsurge in elderly arrests can be found in the statistics of those pensioners already in prison. According to a Japan Times article published last month, over HALF of the inmates of the geriatric wing of Hiroshima's Onomichi prison have some kind of dementia. Living alone, there would be no one close by to recognize the symptoms of dementia and get help. Instead, an aged, needy person could repeatedly commit delinquent acts without remorse or even recollection of having done so, until they get caught. Typically Japan's patient store owners will let an elderly shoplifter off with a warning. But if the perpetrator is not mentally competent, then with repeated visits to steal something, sooner or later even the most patient store owner will get fed up and call the police. The fact that so many elderly are getting caught seems to further substantiate our theory that much of this stealing is not the work of a competent mind. So might Japan be suffering from a wave of shoplifters with mild dementia or Alzheimer's disease? If the Japan Times number is correct, then it might be asked why elderly people with dementia are being sent to prison for such a petty crime as shoplifting when in fact the courts should instead be placing them with care homes where they can get proper treatment and sympathy. But, as the Japan Times article highlights, prison is a good pragmatic second choice if society doesn't like the idea of letting you off the hook to a care home. For those who are mentally competent, so long as you can put up with a regimented life and not being allowed to talk too often, prison is also a good second choice. As an elderly unemployed single person you get three square meals a day, a community of friends, and things to do. Apparently the prisons even supply incontinence diapers for those who need them. The JT article quoted several prisoners who in their late 60's wanted to stay in prison rather than try to fend for themselves, all alone, in open society. Recidivism in such situations is not at all irrational. Life in Japan is not going to get any easier for the elderly, especially now that the nation's public finances are under such pressure. And with consumption tax likely to go to 15% in the next 5 years (our guess), even buying food and paying rent will become difficult. Could you live on JPY15,000 a month? We certainly could not. Thus, we suspect that the current trend of fitting out prisons with geriatric wards is going to increase. Further, there needs to be a proper study done on the mental competency of those elderly being sent to prison for petty offenses. It could well be that they need doctors, not prison guards. ...The information janitors/ ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ SHORT TAKES Some readers have asked why we are running these health products messages. Just more ads? Well, no. Actully, we use these products ourselves, to stay competitive working and playing in Tokyo and know them to be effective. It's our way of sharing insider tips with our readers. Of course if you quote our reference number at iHerb.com, then we'd be happy about that as well... => 1. Ubiquinol for cell health and anti-aging Another supplement you can take for "insurance" (because there are no immediate effects) is Ubiquinol. This is a new highly bio-available form of CoQ10, a vitamin-like substance that is essential for the conversion of energy by body cells, particularly around the heart, and also an antioxidant. If you're taking CoQ10, it's worth knowing that Ubiquinol is a much more effective form. http://www.iherb.com/Healthy-Origins-Ubiquinol-100-mg-60-Softgels/12560?at=0 * iherb.com referral code -- LOY499 * Pays us a small commission at no extra cost to you. => 2. Hotel stay for two at Hotel Avanshell Akasaka This week's Metropolis Members Club prize is a free night's stay at the Hotel Avanshell Akasaka, courtesy of the Hotel Avanshell. Well, we said it would happen, and it did. The lucky person to win two tickets to any United direct destination in the USA or Asia, courtesy of United Airlines, was Seguel Kembo. More tickets coming up in coming months. Becoming a Metropolis Member is as simple as going to the website and signing up for the weekly newsletter. No other obligations. http://blogs.metropolis.co.jp/club/ * Many more prizes scheduled in coming weeks. * No charge to enter. * Simply receive the MMC newsletter to stay in the draw. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** --------- BIOS - Bilingual IT Systems and Support --------- BiOS full-service IT solutions has a new service. Working with our fully licenced temporary dispatch group, we are now able to provide Japan in-country workers for companies not yet registered in Japan. This innovative service is available for companies needing to hire staff for Japanese customers, but who are unable to commit to the expense and infrastructure of maintaining an office in Japan. We take care of all aspects of the employment, contracting, and dispatch -- including management of the employee. For more information on this and other SI and IT services, in English or Japanese: Phone: (03) 4588-2220, Email: solutions at biosjp.com Web: www.biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ NEWS - Bird flu gets worse - Household spending falls 3.3% - Will Japan default on its debt? - Bahamas tax treaty signed - Yamato to expand significantly -> Bird flu gets worse Playing a repeat of the bovine foot and mouth epidemic that required the elimination of entire herds from Miyazaki in Kyushu last year, now the farmers of Miyazaki have been stricken with bird flu amongst their poultry. The latest epidemic appears to be spreading quickly and so far about 120,000 chickens have been culled. ***Ed: Perhaps worse than the outbreaks, though, is an admission by the Miyazaki Prefectural government that it failed to inspect 75% of the required quota of farms and birds because it doesn't have enough staff to do the job. You'd think they would have learned from the bovine culls that they need to get on top of their agricultural sanitation issues.** (Source: TT commentary from japantimes.co.jp, Jan 29, 2011) http://search.japantimes.co.jp/mail/nn20110129a3.html -> Household spending falls 3.3% Deflation continues apace in Japan, aided by the fact that consumers just don't have any confidence to spend. In December 2010, the average household cut its spending by 3.3% compared to December 2009. The average outgoings for a household were JPY327,006, well below expectations. For the whole year, spending was also down, by around 2.8% year on year. By category, clothing was down the most, with an 11.3% drop. ***Ed: Thus providing us with an explanation for Fast Retailing's poor numbers this last quarter.** (Source: TT commentary from tmcnet.com, Jan 27, 2011) http://callcenterinfo.tmcnet.com/news/2011/01/27/5273098.htm -> Will Japan default on its debt? Probably the best summation we've seen of the Japanese humongous public debt problem and whether or not the nation will suffer a debt default similar to that in Greece, comes from an article written for Reuters and published last Friday. In that analysis, the conclusions are that Japan still has enough savings, foreign earnings, and foreign securities that it can sustain the current deficit for some years to come -- despite the recent ratings downgrade by S&P. ***Ed: Some really excellent numbers and other source material in this article. We think it is compulsory reading for everyone doing business with Japan. (Source: TT commentary from reuters.com, Jan 28, 2011) http://tinyurl.com/4mln4hl -> Bahamas tax treaty signed Following on from the US government's lead, the Japanese government has been signing contracts with potential tax havens, to ensure that they can get access to information pertaining to companies registered in those jurisdictions. The first was with Bermuda, occurring last August, and the latest one was signed this last week with the Bahamas. According to the treaty, the Japanese tax office can now request all kinds of financial information about companies registered there and transactions they are effecting that might concern Japan. (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Jan 28, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110128D28JF150.htm -> Yamato to expand significantly In an indication of how exports from Japan's small-to-medium size companies and small-lot orders are increasing, and due to the fact that the transport business in Japan is now at saturation, transport company Yamato says that it is expanding its Asian delivery services significantly. The company expects to double its shipments over the next 9 years to 2bn parcels a year, with another 8 countries joining its delivery network over that time. Interestingly, the company is offering some domestic-only services abroad, such as shipping refrigerated and frozen packages, and choosing the date and time of delivery. (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Jan 28, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110127D27JFA10.htm NOTE: Broken links Many online news sources remove their articles after just a few days of posting them, thus breaking our links -- we apologize for the inconvenience. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** -------- Essential Business Reference in English ---------- If you're a manager or director of a company in Japan, you need these references with detailed explanations in English!!! - Japan Staff Employment Law Guide - 1st Edition Published June, 2010 (JPY 21,000) - Japan Master Tax Guide 2010/11 Published July, 2010 (JPY 18,375) - Japan Corporation Law Guide - 2nd Edition Published November, 2010 (JPY 22,050) *Above prices include tax * As a limited time offer for readers of this newsletter, orders received by November 30 will earn discounts: 1 title: 5% off, more than 2 titles: 10% off. For more details: support at cch.co.jp, call 03-6234-3980. Web: https://www.cch-japan.jp/contents/register/form www.cch-japan.jp ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ CANDIDATE ROUND UP/VACANCIES => BiOS, a Division of the LINC Media group, is actively marketing the following positions for customers setting up or expanding in Japan, as well as other employers of bilinguals. ** HIGHLIGHTED POSITION BiOS is Urgently seeking a Network Architect to join a global information media company in Tokyo. The company is currently expanding their services to both existing and new clients in order to provide services not only in Japan but also within APAC region. The successful candidate should have very strong skill and experience in architecting network infrastructure with little supervision or support from management side. A CCIE holder is preferred. Understanding of Market Data System is a plus. Remuneration is JPY10m ? JPY18m depending on your experience and level. ** POSITIONS VACANT - Service Delivery Project Manager, Market Data, JPY9m?12m - Desktop Engineer, Global IT co JPY3m ? JPY4m - Wintel Integration Engineer, BiOS JPY6.5m ? JPY8m - Public Relations Specialist, Global Health co JPY6m?8m - Account Manager (IT Sales Team), BiOS JPY3m ? JPY4.5m Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: kenji.sakota at biosjp.com ** BiOS Job Mail Every 2 weeks BiOS sends out a regular communication to its job seeking candidates, called BiOS Job Mail. Every edition carries a list of BiOS's current and most up-to-date vacancies, with each entry featuring a short job description and a direct link to the main entry on the BiOS home page. Regardless of whether you are unemployed and searching, thinking about a career change, or just curious to know if there is something out there that might suit you better, the BiOS Job Mail newsletter is an easy and convenient way for you to stay informed. If you would like to register for the BiOS Job Mail, or to find out more, please email stuart.gibson at biosjp.com. Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: stuart.gibson at biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ UPCOMING EVENTS/ANNOUNCEMENTS --------------- Start a Company in Japan ------------------ Entrepreneur's Handbook Seminar 19th of February, 2011 If you have been considering setting up your own company, find out what it takes to make it successful. Terrie Lloyd, founder of over 13 start-up companies in Japan, will be giving an English-language seminar and Q&A on starting up a company in Japan at The Executive Centre (Tokyo Bankers Club). This is an ideal opportunity to find out what is involved, and to ask specific questions that are not normally answered in business books. All materials are in English and are Japan-focused. Date: Feb 19th, 2011 (SAT) Location: The Executive Centre (Tokyo Bankers Club) For more details: http://www.japaninc.com/entrepreneur_handbook_seminar Our special thanks for the venue go to The Executive Centre, Mr. Paul Taylor TEL: 090-9363-9605/email: Paul_Taylor at ExecutiveCentre.com ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CORRECTIONS/FEEDBACK In this section we run comments and corrections submitted by readers. We encourage you to spot our mistakes and amplify our points, by email, to editors at terrie.com. *** No feedback this week. *********************************************************** END SUBSCRIBERS: 8,743 members as of January 30, 2010 (We purge our list regularly.) +++ ABOUT US STAFF Written by: Terrie Lloyd (terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com) HELP: E-mail Terrie-request at mailman.japaninc.com with the word 'help' in the subject or body (don't include the quotes), and you will get back a message with instructions. FEEDBACK Send letters (Feedback, Inquiries & Information) to the editor to terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com. ADVERTISING INFORMATION For more information on advertising in this newsletter, Contact ads at japaninc.com. SUBSCRIBE Get Terrie's Take by giving your name and email address at http://www.japaninc.com/newsletters/free_sign_up, or go straight to Mailman at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ Copyright 2011 Japan Inc. Communications Inc. ----------------- Japan Inc opens up Japan ---------------- J at pan Inc is Japan's leadng independently published English-language business website. Authoritatively chronicling business trends in Japan, each posting brings you in-depth analysis of business, people and technology in the world's second largest economy. Visit www.japaninc.com for the best business insight on Japan available. ----------------------------------------------------------- -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From terrie at mailman.japaninc.com Sun Feb 6 21:23:08 2011 From: terrie at mailman.japaninc.com (Terrie's Take) Date: Sun, 6 Feb 2011 21:23:08 +0900 Subject: Terrie's Take 600 -- Networking Your Refrigerator, Smart Power Meters. E-biz news from Japan Message-ID: * * * * * * * * * T E R R I E 'S T A K E * * * * * * * A weekly roundup of news & information from Terrie Lloyd. (http://www.terrie.com) General Edition Sunday, February 06, 2011, Issue No. 600 +++ INDEX - What's New - Short Takes - News - Candidate Roundup/Vacancies - Upcoming Events - Corrections/Feedback - News Credits SUBSCRIBE to, UNSUBSCRIBE from Terrie's Take at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take, or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ ---------- UPGRADE TODAY TO PBXL IP TELEPHONY ---------- PBXL has the solution for your office. PBXL will purchase and dispose of your outdated, unsupported phone system and provide you with state of the art Cisco VoIP telephony. PBXL provides the features and flexibility your business needs to compete including computer telephony, iPhone integration, proactive monitoring, and bundled support and maintenance. For additional information call us anytime at 03-4550-1600, e-mail us at info at pbxl.jp or visit http://en.pbxl.co.jp/ ----------- PBXL is BUSINESS COMMUNICATIONS ------------ +++ WHAT'S NEW When the world's largest power utility (ranked by assets and market value), the Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO), makes a technology announcement, you can be sure that it is going to be something major which will touch all of our lives -- particularly since we're not aware of any competitors within Tokyo. Well, TEPCO made just such an announcement this last week when it said that it will roll out 27m smart power meters to consumers from 2013, preceded by a 90,000-home test run from this coming October. The company joins many power companies around the world which are trying out smart power meters as part of an overall shift to so-called smart grid power distribution. Combined, the power meters and a smart grid allow both the monitoring and control of consumer usage, as well as the better calibrated "on-demand" production of energy. This dynamic input-to-output cohesiveness of our energy system is important now because TEPCO and other Japanese power companies derive almost 80% of their power from burning hydrocarbons (oil, coal, LNG, etc.), especially during peak usage periods such as heat waves and cold snaps. Therefore, they want to encourage users to go off-peak by adopting behaviors like doing the washing at night, switching to energy efficient home appliances, and charging electric cars after factories close in the evenings. Balancing out power usage means that more energy can be sourced from much cheaper "fixed" energy assets such as nuclear, hydro, and thermal power stations rather than quick and dirty hydrocarbons. Another reason for smart power meters is that as consumer-supplied power from home solar cells and gas-driven fuel cell systems become more prevalent, and households adopt en mass electric cars (a certain trend, just wait for a Middle East crisis to bump up sales), then power companies will know what incoming energy there is and how to offset that against the need for oil-fired power. [Continued below...] -------------- Cut your communications costs -------------- How do you cut your communication bill while increasing its quality? Join our seminar hosted by Computec, Cisco, KDDI and Skype Japan to find out! Reduce operating cost by implementing Skype's business technologies with 'SkyGateway' into your IP phone system and SmartPhones! Learn from the pros why 'SkyGateway' should be your preferred service. Please e-mail info at computec.co.jp for seminar registration. Or call 03-5225-7017 / skype:computec.co.jp *Seminar is held in Japanese.* ------------------------------------------------------------ [...Article continues] Then thirdly, if there is ever a power outage -- so far an uncommon event here -- whether because of overload, accident, or natural disaster, then with intelligent controls in each consumer's premises, the power company can switch a broken grid back on in controlled and stepped stages, without having to worry about power surges caused by unswitched appliances suddenly starting up again. The advent of smart power meters is being made possible thanks to the pending assignment of dedicated wireless spectrum to the devices by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications (MIC) in FY2012. The meters are likely to run on the 915-928MHz band, similar to the US and Europe. Actually, MIC's ambitions for smart meters extend well beyond just power. The ministry also wants standardization of intelligent water and gas metering, through an initiative dubbed the Ubiquitous Metering System. These standards are expected to provide a foundation for the growth of a new export industry for Japanese makers. To that end, who is going to get most of this economic pie appears to already have been decided. Toshiba tied up with TEPCO several years ago on smart power meters and seems to be the main vendor to the TEPCO roll-out. 27m smart meters -- that's a pretty juicy contract. Other players who are working on other utilities include GE in a tie-up with Fuji Electric, Hitachi, and Fujitsu, which is scoring export contracts but not much in Japan at this stage. As a side note, TEPCO is not the first to adopt smart power meters in Japan. KEPCO, the utility supplying the Kansai, started in 2008 and so far has installed about 640,000 meters, with another 200,000 scheduled for FY2011. So after all the hype about how great smart meters are going to be, what do we see as their downside? Firstly, power costings will become more complex, and if you think your power bills are hard to understand now, wait til you start getting charged in time bands, locales, types of usage (iPod charging could be priced differently to refrigerator power), whether you're a pensioner or otherwise disadvantaged, and seasons. This could clearly be ameliorated by the utilities making an effort to create good quality end-user applications that connect to phones and other mobile devices, so as to encourage more consumer interaction with their appliances. As one is quoted as saying, "We need to make saving power, fun". Secondly there will be some significant human costs. TEPCO appears to be employing around 5,500 power meter readers in Tokyo, a number we picked up after iTron sold a similar number of hand-held meter reading computers to TEPCO some years ago. We estimate that the cost savings to TEPCO will be at least JPY3bn a year, once salaries, facilities, and management costs are factored in. Not a huge amount, but in the world of bean counting power companies, a useful uptick. And for money-losing TEPCO, probably every little contribution to the bottom line helps right now. Of course, of you add to TEPCO the other 10 power utilities around Japan, then throw in dozens of water and gas utilities as well, we can guess that more than 30,000 meter readers will lose their jobs over the next few years. This is great bottom-line action for the companies, but for those readers who are mostly housewives and who are otherwise unskilled, finding replacement work will be difficult. Lastly, smart power meters are offer the potential for more things to go wrong. On the side of the power companies, the Toshiba models supposedly allow TEPCO to turn off a customer's appliances remotely, presumably with the aid of IPV6-enabled devices -- which although still a few years away is still a bit disconcerting. For example, if someone fell behind in payments, whereas previously the requirement for the utility company has been to maintain basic services, now they will be able to selectively turn off everything except heating on a cold day. Thus, no cooking gas, no lights, no TV or Internet... Then there is the potential for abuse on the side of customers. Power meter software hacking has already occurred in the USA, and there are plenty of capable hackers here in Japan. Instead of hacking into someone's credit card account, you could simply have your smart meter say that you are pumping large quantities of solar or other alternative power into the grid and have the power company credit you accordingly... Then what about power meter viruses? Infected with a reboot virus, plugging in your shaver on a hurried morning in 2020 could get interesting! ************ BTW, did you notice that we have hit another milestone -- 600 newsletters? There are 48 issues a year, so this represents around 12 and a half years of monitoring Japanese business trends. We really appreciate all the encouragement received over the years for putting Terrie's Take together, and will continue to do so for the foreseeable future. Can we ask all readers to mention the Take to your friends? We'd like to get our subscription levels back up to 10,000 people. ...The information janitors/ ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ SHORT TAKES Some readers have asked why we are running these health products messages. Just more ads? Well, no. Actully, we use these products ourselves, to stay competitive working and playing in Tokyo and know them to be effective. It's our way of sharing insider tips with our readers. Of course if you quote our reference number at iHerb.com, then we'd be happy about that as well... => 1. Myrrh/Goldenseal Mouth Tonic for Gum Health Working late for weeks in a row leaves your body run down. That and poor diet can lead to gum recession and mouth ulcers which are both painful and annoying. By far the best remedy we have found for oral health when under physical stress is a myrrh/goldenseal combination that you apply directly to the gums/ulcers with an eye dropper. It's not a mouth wash. Works overnight and is completely natural. http://bit.ly/hQJGk1 * iherb.com referral code -- LOY499 * Pays us a small commission at no extra cost to you. => 2. Hotel stay for two at Hotel Avanshell Akasaka This week's Metropolis Members Club prize is a pair of Adidas MI Performance customized shoes, courtesy of Adidas Japan. Our congratulations to last week's winner, Jon Wharton, who won a night's stay for two at the Hotel Avanshell Akasaka, courtesy of the Hotel Avanshell Akasaka. Becoming a Metropolis Member is as simple as going to the website and signing up for the weekly newsletter. No other obligations. http://blogs.metropolis.co.jp/club/ * Many more prizes scheduled in coming weeks. * No charge to enter. * Simply receive the MMC newsletter to stay in the draw. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** --------- BIOS - Bilingual IT Systems and Support --------- BiOS full-service IT solutions has a new service. Working with our fully licenced temporary dispatch group, we are now able to provide Japan in-country workers for companies not yet registered in Japan. This innovative service is available for companies needing to hire staff for Japanese customers, but who are unable to commit to the expense and infrastructure of maintaining an office in Japan. We take care of all aspects of the employment, contracting, and dispatch -- including management of the employee. For more information on this and other SI and IT services, in English or Japanese: Phone: (03) 4588-2220, Email: solutions at biosjp.com Web: www.biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ NEWS - Nuclear arms hawks gain a supporter -- Tokyo Gov. Ishihara - New advisory panel for tax and social insurance reforms - Falling commercial rents hurt Mitsui Fudosan earnings - Tsutaya's CCC to do management buyout - eMobile rolls out cheaper, faster iPad solution -> Nuclear arms hawks gain a supporter -- Tokyo Gov. Ishihara Shintaro Ishihara, Tokyo's governor for life (he's 78 and counting) has reaffirmed his outspoken reputation by noting in a recent speech that if Japan had had nuclear weapons, then North Korea wouldn't have abducted Japanese nationals during the 1970s and 1980s. He followed up by intimating that since the US bombed Libya as punishment for terrorism (but not for nuclear arms, those came later), Japan is justified in taking a tougher approach to North Korea. ***Ed: Well, it may be correct that North Korea only recognizes force, however, Ishihara ignores the fact that Japan's current democracy is based on non-aggression, and in particular no nukes. He and the nation's other hawks will first need to de-program their own citizens before getting the military might they crave. Better that Japan continue to lean on the US for their nuclear umbrella, and pay the very modest "rent" resulting from that policy. Meanwhile, we think Ishihara definitely needs to retire before he says something even more outrageous.** (Source: TT commentary from telegraph.co.uk, Feb 4, 2011) http://tinyurl.com/6zvtoyr -> New advisory panel for tax and social insurance reforms At the beginning of the year, we predicted that Naoto Kan's government will wise up and will go on the offensive to start a public discussion of consumption tax, in an effort to have the general population accept the inevitability of a massive increase. One step towards doing this was the establishment of a new tax/social welfare panel to create reform plans and to test ideas through debate and hearings. Leading the panel will be Kaoru Yosano, a consumption tax hawk.***Ed: This is the right way for Kan to win approval, but we also worry what such a rise might do to the economy. It will be ugly for the first year or so until people get used to it -- and the mooted 15% is still better than many other countries, such as the UK with its 20% tax.** (Source: TT commentary from ibnlive.in.com, Feb 5, 2011) http://tinyurl.com/4lmpcum -> Falling commercial rents hurt Mitsui Fudosan earnings Slowed demand for office buildings and a big drop in rents have slashed the profits of the nation's biggest property developer by 34% over the last 9 months. Sales were JPY987.4bn and net profit was JPY33.8bn, down from JPY50bn a year earlier. The company's office leasing vacancy rate rose to 4.9% in December 2010, up from 3.2% three months earlier -- not a good trend. Average office rent in Tokyo is now JPY17,585/tsubo (3.3 sq. m.), the lowest in six years. ***Ed: Our take is that this office rent deflation trend will continue for at least the next 6 months. Yes, exporters are making record profits, but they account for only 15% of the economy. Everyone else is doing it tough.** (Source: TT commentary from bloomberg.com, Feb 4, 2011) http://tinyurl.com/46bearw -> Tsutaya's CCC to do management buyout Japan's massive Culture Convenience Club, which owns video rental chain Tsutaya, looks set to go private again, after a management buyout bid by founder and still-major shareholder, Muneaki Masuda. Apparently Masuda wants to wrestle CCC's business into the digital age much more quickly and is tired of having to address public shareholder concerns about the strategic investments that will have to be made. The MBO calls for Masuda and his supporters to pay around JPY69.6bn. ***Ed: Needless to say, shares were limit-up after the announcement.** (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Feb 4, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110204D03JFA12.htm -> eMobile rolls out cheaper, faster iPad solution If you're in the market for an Apple iPad, or already have one but are disappointed by how terribly slow Softbank's 3G service is, then you should know there is an alternative. Basically the Softbank service is too slow to support the main reason companies buy iPads -- for sales people to show visual materials to customers in the field. Thus it's interesting to see eMobile do a deal with Apple whereby they will see the WiFi-only model coupled with a fast eMobile modem. **Ed: We can tell you that the eMobile modems are really excellent -- fast, cheap, and portable. Because they are WiFi, there is no need for a connector and you can keep the modem in your bag while using it.** (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Feb 4, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110203D03JFA03.htm NOTE: Broken links Many online news sources remove their articles after just a few days of posting them, thus breaking our links -- we apologize for the inconvenience. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** -------- Essential Business Reference in English ---------- If you're a manager or director of a company in Japan, you need these references with detailed explanations in English!!! - Japan Staff Employment Law Guide - 1st Edition Published June, 2010 (JPY 21,000) - Japan Master Tax Guide 2010/11 Published July, 2010 (JPY 18,375) - Japan Corporation Law Guide - 2nd Edition Published November, 2010 (JPY 22,050) *Above prices include tax * As a limited time offer for readers of this newsletter, orders received by November 30 will earn discounts: 1 title: 5% off, more than 2 titles: 10% off. For more details: support at cch.co.jp, call 03-6234-3980. Web: https://www.cch-japan.jp/contents/register/form www.cch-japan.jp ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ CANDIDATE ROUND UP/VACANCIES => BiOS, a Division of the LINC Media group, is actively marketing the following positions for customers setting up or expanding in Japan, as well as other employers of bilinguals. ** HIGHLIGHTED POSITION BiOS is currently looking for a Service Delivery Project Manager to join a global information media company in Tokyo. The company is currently expanding their services to both existing and new clients in order to provide services not only in Japan but also within APAC region. A successful candidate should have solid project management experience in IT Infrastructure (strong focus on Network) related, preferably in financial industry with understanding of Market Data Systems. Remuneration is JPY8m ? JPY12m depending on your experience and technical level. ** POSITIONS VACANT - Network Architect, Market Data, JPY10m ? JPY18m - Account Manager (IT Sales Team), BiOS JPY3m ? JPY4.5m - Sales Manager, High Tech JPY7m ? JPY9m - PR Specialist, Global Health co JPY6m ? JPY8m - AS400 Programmer, Medical Equipment co JPY 6m ? JPY8m - Media Manager (Data Center), iBank JPY 4.5m ? JPY5.5m Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: kenji.sakota at biosjp.com ** BiOS Job Mail Every 2 weeks BiOS sends out a regular communication to its job seeking candidates, called BiOS Job Mail. Every edition carries a list of BiOS's current and most up-to-date vacancies, with each entry featuring a short job description and a direct link to the main entry on the BiOS home page. Regardless of whether you are unemployed and searching, thinking about a career change, or just curious to know if there is something out there that might suit you better, the BiOS Job Mail newsletter is an easy and convenient way for you to stay informed. If you would like to register for the BiOS Job Mail, or to find out more, please email stuart.gibson at biosjp.com. Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: stuart.gibson at biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ UPCOMING EVENTS/ANNOUNCEMENTS --------------- Start a Company in Japan ------------------ Entrepreneur's Handbook Seminar 19th of February, 2011 If you have been considering setting up your own company, find out what it takes to make it successful. Terrie Lloyd, founder of over 13 start-up companies in Japan, will be giving an English-language seminar and Q&A on starting up a company in Japan at The Executive Centre (Tokyo Bankers Club). This is an ideal opportunity to find out what is involved, and to ask specific questions that are not normally answered in business books. All materials are in English and are Japan-focused. Date: Feb 19th, 2011 (SAT) Location: The Executive Centre (Tokyo Bankers Club) For more details: http://www.japaninc.com/entrepreneur_handbook_seminar Our special thanks for the venue go to The Executive Centre, Mr. Paul Taylor TEL: 090-9363-9605/email: Paul_Taylor at ExecutiveCentre.com ----------------------------------------------------------- ---------------- ICA Event - February 17 ------------------ Speakers: Dr David Sweet & Charles Breen, Specialized Group Title: Job Search, Recruiting and Training Details: Complete event details at http://www.icajapan.jp/ (RSVP Required) Date: Thursday, February 17, 2011 Time: 6:30 Doors open, Buffet Dinner included and cash bar Cost: 4,000 yen (members), 6,000 yen (non-members) Open to all. Venue is The Foreign Correspondents' Club of Japan. http://www.fccj.or.jp/aboutus/map ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CORRECTIONS/FEEDBACK In this section we run comments and corrections submitted by readers. We encourage you to spot our mistakes and amplify our points, by email, to editors at terrie.com. *** No feedback this week. *********************************************************** END SUBSCRIBERS: 8,746 members as of February 06, 2010 (We purge our list regularly.) +++ ABOUT US STAFF Written by: Terrie Lloyd (terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com) HELP: E-mail Terrie-request at mailman.japaninc.com with the word 'help' in the subject or body (don't include the quotes), and you will get back a message with instructions. FEEDBACK Send letters (Feedback, Inquiries & Information) to the editor to terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com. ADVERTISING INFORMATION For more information on advertising in this newsletter, Contact ads at japaninc.com. SUBSCRIBE Get Terrie's Take by giving your name and email address at http://www.japaninc.com/newsletters/free_sign_up, or go straight to Mailman at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ Copyright 2011 Japan Inc. Communications Inc. ----------------- Japan Inc opens up Japan ---------------- J at pan Inc is Japan's only independently published English- language business website. Authoritatively chronicling online the business trends in Japan, each posting brings you in-depth analysis of business, people and technology in the world's second largest economy. Visit www.japaninc.com for the best business insight on Japan available. ----------------------------------------------------------- -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From terrie at mailman.japaninc.com Sun Feb 13 22:08:07 2011 From: terrie at mailman.japaninc.com (Terrie's Take) Date: Sun, 13 Feb 2011 22:08:07 +0900 Subject: Terrie's Take 601 -- Jobs Recovery on the Way? E-biz news from Japan Message-ID: * * * * * * * * * T E R R I E 'S T A K E * * * * * * * A weekly roundup of news & information from Terrie Lloyd. (http://www.terrie.com) General Edition Sunday, February 13, 2011, Issue No. 601 +++ INDEX - What's New -- Skilled jobs recovery? - Short Takes -- Non-lauryl sulfate shampoo - News -- JAXA fishing net to round up space junk - Candidate Roundup/Vacancies - Upcoming Events - Corrections/Feedback -- Job losses after meter readers go - News Credits SUBSCRIBE to, UNSUBSCRIBE from Terrie's Take at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take, or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ ---------- UPGRADE TODAY TO PBXL IP TELEPHONY ---------- PBXL has the solution for your office. PBXL will purchase and dispose of your outdated, unsupported phone system and provide you with state of the art Cisco VoIP telephony. PBXL provides the features and flexibility your business needs to compete including computer telephony, iPhone integration, proactive monitoring, and bundled support and maintenance. For additional information call us anytime at 03-4550-1600, e-mail us at info at pbxl.jp or visit http://en.pbxl.co.jp/ ----------- PBXL is BUSINESS COMMUNICATIONS ------------ +++ WHAT'S NEW There was a rally in Tokyo this last week for over 1,500 unemployed college kids and other youths who have not yet found jobs. Anywhere else this would have been a demonstration against government policies, complete with banners and confrontations, however by all accounts the gathering was more of a pep rally than anything else and people were punching fists in the air than at the authorities. Of course the attendees have every right to be concerned about their futures, given that only 70% of college graduates had found jobs by December 1st, and less than half of junior college students have done so. Some Japanese firms may be making record profits on overseas earnings, but most of them are still very much stuck in a difficult recession, and between the two extremes not many are hiring staff. Indeed, amongst corporate senior managers there is a continuing fear that the US economy will take another major tumble later this year, and that instead of bulking up on people, cash piles are needed instead, to ride out the coming rough times and to do M&As outside the country. What the hiring stats also tell us is that not only are jobs overall scarce but for lesser skilled kids, they are in particularly short supply. This is a direct result of both manufacturing moving off-shore and the fact that so many domestic services companies are in serious financial trouble. If you don't have an engineering or medical degree, or strong language and sales/marketing skills, then the changing job market offers little promise for the future and this year's graduates stand to become a lost generation from a career point of view. [Continued below...] -------------- Cut your communications costs -------------- How do you cut your communication bill while increasing its quality? Join our seminar hosted by Computec, Cisco, KDDI and Skype Japan to find out! Reduce operating cost by implementing Skype's business technologies with 'SkyGateway' into your IP phone system and SmartPhones! Learn from the pros why 'SkyGateway' should be your preferred service. Please e-mail info at computec.co.jp for seminar registration. Or call 03-5225-7017 / skype:computec.co.jp *Seminar is held in Japanese.* ------------------------------------------------------------ [...Article continues] The government's answer to chronic youth unemployment is to offer companies JPY100,000 per month for each new graduate they employ on a three-month fixed term contract (a type of contract that allows companies to let the person go after the three month period), then a further JPY500,000 if they convert the employee to a regular full-timer. While for companies that are going to be hiring new people anyway this is a nice perk, for companies that are borderline in profits already, and that is most of them at present, then a mere JPY800,000 is not going to be a serious incentive to bring someone new in. In fact, on a salary of JPY250,000, the costs borne by the company for social insurance for the new person would eat up the value of the subsidy in just 18 months. So no one is going to get rich hiring people they don't need. Instead, the government needs to focus on a longer term and more appropriate strategy, that being the improvement of skills of employees, so that Japan can compete globally and so that companies who are in good shape, mostly those with technology and IT capabilities, can find the people that they need. As we watch the jobs market, particularly the online jobs sites, it is quite clear that there are plenty of jobs available, but mostly for those people with either technical abilities or language skills. There is plenty of anecdotal evidence around that there is indeed a buoyant market reemerging for skilled workers. A recent Robert Walters jobs and salaries survey had this to say about their quite substantial Japan recruiting practice: "We saw a steady increase in recruitment activity during 2010 as many Japan-based firms lifted hiring freezes put in place during the previous 12 months. While there was a clear improvement in market conditions, employers remain cautiously optimistic about the rate and sustainability of market recovery." The report goes on to say that financial services and IT are recovering much more quickly than other sectors, with Japanese companies are selectively hiring to support their international business growth, as well as anticipated major shifts in the technology markets, such as cloud computing and all the support functions required for this IT model. It then closes with the comment that: "The competition for the highest caliber professionals will increase in 2011..." Other evidence that there is a strong recovery in the recruitment of skilled people comes from the two recruiting companies that are public and therefore required to share their financials. Firstly, there has been a remarkable recovery in the market value of JAC, a mid-sized recruiting company based in Tokyo. This firm has been in the doldrums for some time, but over the last 3 months its stock has roared up the charts on the basis of positive earnings reported in December 2010 -- the first in three years. Indeed, since December, JAC's shares have risen from 3,000 yen to more than 6,000 yen, going limit-up several times. Maybe there is something else going on, a buy-out possibly? We don't know, but for now we're assuming that JAC is going to report a strong first half and that this is what is driving the share price. The other company that is easy to check on is En-Japan, the firm that took over Wall Street Associates several months ago. Looking at their financials, they were obviously badly affected by the jobs slowdown in 2008, and in fact their sales in 2009 were just half of the previous year. However, on an unconsolidated basis (i.e., before accounting for WSA's apparently very good numbers), FY2010 closed up, and the forecast is for a recovery in earnings in 2011. This has boosted En-Japan's stock price by about 40% over the last 3 months. We are hearing from other recruiting companies that the last 6-9 months have been extremely busy and that everyone is starting to make money again. Given that labor usually lags the markets by 6-12 months, one might think that this is simply the result of an overall recovery. However, this time around, the action appears to be caused more by groundshifts in the type of employees companies are needing, and it's only the skilled jobs that will recover this time around. Unfortunately, skilled jobs are just a fraction of the overall jobs market, so bread winners will continue to be under pressure and so will the domestic economy. ...The information janitors/ ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ SHORT TAKES Some readers have asked why we are running these health products messages. Just more ads? Well, no. Actually, we use these products ourselves, to stay competitive working and playing in Tokyo and know them to be effective. It's our way of sharing insider tips with our readers. Of course if you quote our reference number at iHerb.com, then we'd be happy about that as well... => 1. Non-Lauryl Sulfate Shampoo -- Jason Natural Jojoba The skin is the body's largest single organ, and yet we do little to support it. At very least, not exposing the skin to deliberate daily lashings of potentially carcinogenic chemicals is a good idea. Therefore, over the last year we have been looking for shampoos that contain no lauryl sulfates and yet still lather and smell good. One such shampoo we can recommend is made by Jason Natural of L.A. Great smell, controls dandruff, and the conditioner works well. http://bit.ly/igVlYB => 2. Hotel stay for two at Hotel Avanshell Akasaka One lucky MMC member this week will win one night's stay for two at the Mercure Hotel Ginza Tokyo, courtesy of the Mercure Hotel Ginza Tokyo. Becoming a Metropolis Member is as simple as going to the website and signing up for the weekly newsletter. No other obligations. http://blogs.metropolis.co.jp/club/ * Many more prizes scheduled in coming weeks. * No charge to enter. * Simply receive the MMC newsletter to stay in the draw. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** --------- BIOS - Bilingual IT Systems and Support --------- BiOS full-service IT solutions has a new service. Working with our fully licenced temporary dispatch group, we are now able to provide Japan in-country workers for companies not yet registered in Japan. This innovative service is available for companies needing to hire staff for Japanese customers, but who are unable to commit to the expense and infrastructure of maintaining an office in Japan. We take care of all aspects of the employment, contracting, and dispatch -- including management of the employee. For more information on this and other SI and IT services, in English or Japanese: Phone: (03) 4588-2220, Email: solutions at biosjp.com Web: www.biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ NEWS - A trillion dollars of public debt - Consumer sentiment "improves" -- to just mildly pessimistic - Net making expertise for space junk - "We didn't know we had to pay tax" - IUJ gets a new way to make money -> A trillion dollars of public debt A trillion dollars doesn't sound as much as it once did, thanks to the US deficit over the last couple of years. Nonetheless for Japan the government's JPY919.151trn (US$1.12trn) debt mountain means that every man, woman, and child now owes JPY723,622 (US$8,800) to someone in unpaid taxes -- i.e., the way that the government is likely to get this money back. What's worse is that the Finance Ministry reckons this total rose 1.1% in just the last four months. ***Ed: As we keep saying, luckily the Japanese government owes most of this money to other Japanese, the same people they are able to tax. Once they start having to go ashore for funds, then you know they're in real trouble. Not something that is likely to happen in the next 5 years, though, thanks to the pending rise in consumption tax.** (Source: TT commentary from wsj.com, Feb 10, 2011) http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20110210-704337.html -> Consumer sentiment "improves" -- to just mildly pessimistic A Cabinet Office survey has found that consumers are more optimistic about the economy than any time in the last seven months. The Office says that consumer sentiment index rose to 41.1 in January, up from 40.1 in December. The index is calibrated such that a reading of 50 means that consumers are neutral about the economy. So right now, 20% more people (70% in total) are still pessimistic. Apparently that's a reasonably good reading in a nation of pessimists... (Source: TT commentary from bbc.co.uk, Feb 9, 2011) http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/12352595 -> Net making expertise for space junk Making the weird news list for this week is Japan's JAXA space agency, which apparently is working with a fishing net manufacturer to make a steel wire net for collecting space junk floating in orbit around the earth. The net will be several kilometers wide and after a "catch" of junk is made, it will be electrified by an attached control box, causing the whole mess to fall back to earth and be burned up upon re-entry. JAXA is still some years away from making anything solid from the project, but needless to say, the roughly 320,000 pieces of junk exceeding 1cm in diameter and in orbit at the moment is causing some risks to space travelers and someone needs to clear it. Clean-tech takes on a new dimension. (Source: TT commentary from msn.com, Feb 8, 2011) http://on.msnbc.com/gnjjKX -> "We didn't know we had to pay tax" There must be some embarrassed people working over at JPMorgan Securities, after it has come to light that 120 former and current employees have been dunned by the Tax Office for not paying taxes on an estimated JPY700m of income earned primarily through a stock option program run by the company up to 2008. Many of those accused apparently operated the shares received through the program in off-shore trading accounts, making it especially naughty. (Source: TT commentary from japantimes.co.jp, Feb 13, 2011) http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nn20110213b4.html -> IUJ gets a new way to make money Stuck out in Minami Uonuma, Niigata, a pretty but remote place nonetheless, the International University of Japan has its work cut out for it trying to attract students. Over the last few years it has managed to do so by offering advanced education to foreigners, mainly Asians, on scholarships. But again, this has been a tough way to make money. So it's good to see them come up with something new. Essentially, they have so many foreigners on their campus now (about 90% of students) that they are able to offer summer "immersion" classes to employees of major companies, who need to learn English for their jobs. Apparently the IUJ folks have been hard at work and have signed "partnership" agreements with 35 major Japanese corporations, including Orix, Kao, Sumitomo, Takeda Pharmaceutical, Panasonic, Fast Retailing, and Mizuho. One week in such a course will be JPY700,000 per person, rather steep but probably cheaper than sending those same folks abroad for a similar period. (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Feb 12, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110211D11JFA07.htm NOTE: Broken links Many online news sources remove their articles after just a few days of posting them, thus breaking our links -- we apologize for the inconvenience. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** -------- Essential Business Reference in English ---------- If you're a manager or director of a company in Japan, you need these references with detailed explanations in English!!! - Japan Staff Employment Law Guide - 1st Edition Published June, 2010 (JPY 21,000) - Japan Master Tax Guide 2010/11 Published July, 2010 (JPY 18,375) - Japan Corporation Law Guide - 2nd Edition Published November, 2010 (JPY 22,050) *Above prices include tax * As a limited time offer for readers of this newsletter, orders received by November 30 will earn discounts: 1 title: 5% off, more than 2 titles: 10% off. For more details: support at cch.co.jp, call 03-6234-3980. Web: https://www.cch-japan.jp/contents/register/form www.cch-japan.jp ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ CANDIDATE ROUND UP/VACANCIES => BiOS, a Division of the LINC Media group, is actively marketing the following positions for customers setting up or expanding in Japan, as well as other employers of bilinguals. ** HIGHLIGHTED POSITION BiOS is currently looking for a Service Delivery Project Manager to join a global information media company in Tokyo. The company is currently expanding their services to both existing and new clients in order to provide services not only in Japan but also within APAC region. One of our clients is a consulting company that helps foreign companies entering the Japanese market for the first time.They are seeking a Professional Sales person to support one of their clients, a manufacturing company of embedded devices (i.e. mobile phones), to expand the market share of their antenna products. In this position, the candidate will be responsible for new client development, technical support to existing clients, and other sales activities. The successful candidate should have at least 2 years of sales experience, preferably in the electronics industry. Remuneration is JPY7m ? JPY9m depending on your experience and skill level. ** POSITIONS VACANT - Service Delivery Project Mgr, Market Data, JPY8m ? JPY12m - Wintel Integration Engineer, BiOS, JPY5m ? JPY8m - IT Manager, IT Security, JPY8m ? JPY10m - AS400 Programmer, Medical Equipment co, JPY 6m ? JPY8m - Media Manager (Data Center), iBank, JPY 4.5m ? JPY5.5m - IMAC Engineer, iBank, JPY3m ? JPY5m Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: kenji.sakota at biosjp.com ** BiOS Job Mail Every 2 weeks BiOS sends out a regular communication to its job seeking candidates, called BiOS Job Mail. Every edition carries a list of BiOS's current and most up-to-date vacancies, with each entry featuring a short job description and a direct link to the main entry on the BiOS home page. Regardless of whether you are unemployed and searching, thinking about a career change, or just curious to know if there is something out there that might suit you better, the BiOS Job Mail newsletter is an easy and convenient way for you to stay informed. If you would like to register for the BiOS Job Mail, or to find out more, please email kenji.sakota at biosjp.com. Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: kenji.sakota at biosjp.com. ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ UPCOMING EVENTS/ANNOUNCEMENTS --------------- Start a Company in Japan ------------------ Entrepreneur's Handbook Seminar, 19th of February, 2011 If you have been considering setting up your own company, find out what it takes to make it successful. Terrie Lloyd, founder of over 13 start-up companies in Japan, will be giving an English-language seminar and Q&A on starting up a company in Japan at The Executive Centre (Tokyo Bankers Club). This is an ideal opportunity to find out what is involved, and to ask specific questions that are not normally answered in business books. All materials are in English and are Japan-focused. Date: Feb 19th, 2011 (SAT) Location: The Executive Centre (Tokyo Bankers Club) For more details: http://www.japaninc.com/entrepreneur_handbook_seminar Our special thanks for the venue go to The Executive Centre, Mr. Paul Taylor TEL: 090-9363-9605/email: Paul_Taylor at ExecutiveCentre.com ----------------------------------------------------------- ---------------- ICA Event - February 17 ------------------ Speakers: Dr David Sweet & Charles Breen, Specialized Group Title: Job Search, Recruiting and Training Details: Complete event details at http://www.icajapan.jp/ (RSVP Required) Date: Thursday, February 17, 2011 Time: 6:30 Doors open, Buffet Dinner included and cash bar Cost: 4,000 yen (members), 6,000 yen (non-members) Open to all. Venue is The Foreign Correspondents' Club of Japan. http://www.fccj.or.jp/aboutus/map ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CORRECTIONS/FEEDBACK In this section we run comments and corrections submitted by readers. We encourage you to spot our mistakes and amplify our points, by email, to editors at terrie.com. *** In Terrie's Take 600 we discussed the link between smart meters and looming unemployment for the tens of thousands of meter readers that utilities hire. => Reader Responds: On Smart Meter?s and unemployment ? it occurs to me that this is probably considered fine by a certain school of thought concerning the inverting demographic triangle. OK, maybe it?s a little out of sync with the big retirement bulge not quite begun yet, however you can imagine the ?Men in Grey? considering as this being a 30K reduction in future needs to import cheap foreign labor whose other utilization can be replaced from the newly unemployed housewife seeking part time work pool..... Another key reduction will be in the number of old guys on the highway toll booths (post-ETC, they are gradually going the same way as those who used to man the railway ticket gates, and will phase out to only a few needed per toll area). Of course when the real crunch comes a reduction in the orange light-saber management professionals, and those in allied trades can also be called upon to make the numbers balance! On Ishihara ? I dunno ? that?s nothing particularly outrageous in what he said, by his standards ? he has said far worse on occasion..... I can bear personal witness to having heard him say worse myself some years ago. *********************************************************** END SUBSCRIBERS: 8,751 members as of February 13, 2010 (We purge our list regularly.) +++ ABOUT US STAFF Written by: Terrie Lloyd (terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com) HELP: E-mail Terrie-request at mailman.japaninc.com with the word 'help' in the subject or body (don't include the quotes), and you will get back a message with instructions. FEEDBACK Send letters (Feedback, Inquiries & Information) to the editor to terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com. ADVERTISING INFORMATION For more information on advertising in this newsletter, Contact ads at japaninc.com. SUBSCRIBE Get Terrie's Take by giving your name and email address at http://www.japaninc.com/newsletters/free_sign_up, or go straight to Mailman at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ Copyright 2011 Japan Inc. Communications Inc. ----------------- Japan Inc opens up Japan ---------------- J at pan Inc is Japan's only independently published English- language business website. Authoritatively chronicling online the business trends in Japan, each posting brings you in-depth analysis of business, people and technology in the world's second largest economy. Visit www.japaninc.com for the best business insight on Japan available. ----------------------------------------------------------- -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From terrie at mailman.japaninc.com Mon Feb 21 00:22:04 2011 From: terrie at mailman.japaninc.com (Terrie's Take) Date: Mon, 21 Feb 2011 00:22:04 +0900 Subject: Terrie's Take 602 -- Moving Office, Cloud Apps, and Saving Money, e-biz news from Japan Message-ID: * * * * * * * * * T E R R I E 'S T A K E * * * * * * * A weekly roundup of news & information from Terrie Lloyd. (http://www.terrie.com) General Edition Sunday, February 20, 2011, Issue No. 602 +++ INDEX - What's New -- Saving money moving office and IT - Short Takes -- Black Cherry -- for gout relief - News -- Supreme Court: HK residency is not tax evasion - Candidate Roundup/Vacancies - Upcoming Events - Corrections/Feedback - News Credits SUBSCRIBE to, UNSUBSCRIBE from Terrie's Take at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take, or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ ---------- UPGRADE TODAY TO PBXL IP TELEPHONY ---------- PBXL has the solution for your office. PBXL will purchase and dispose of your outdated, unsupported phone system and provide you with state of the art Cisco VoIP telephony. PBXL provides the features and flexibility your business needs to compete including computer telephony, iPhone integration, proactive monitoring, and bundled support and maintenance. For additional information call us anytime at 03-4550-1600, e-mail us at info at pbxl.jp or visit http://en.pbxl.co.jp/ ----------- PBXL is BUSINESS COMMUNICATIONS ------------ +++ WHAT'S NEW Back in Terrie's Take 581 we discussed the fact that office rents in Tokyo are dropping and now is probably the best time to consider a move. In fact we decided to eat some of our own dog food, and in January we moved our office to a new location in Roppongi. This week's take is a discussion of what happened, and what we learned about massively reducing costs by moving both our office and our IT. Back in 2007 a real estate fund bought the Minami-Aoyama building we had been tenanted in for the previous 10 years. We'd had a great relationship with the previous owners, Odakyu, but obviously they knew nothing about the real estate business and were eventually forced to sell off all their real estate assets to the REIT. The new owners wasted no time in jacking up the rent substantially. It wasn't a pleasant experience, and it started with a very heavy-looking fellow coming over and telling us flat out that he was going to double our rent, or else. Keeping in mind that this was 2007, we eventually agreed to a gradual increase leading to a 50% rent rise over three years. Of course the events of 2008 meant that we got stuck in a "meat grinder" with the rent increasing each year, even as our business suffered falls in revenue and profits. Hoping that the long relationship meant something, we went back to the landlord in March of last year, and asked them to finally reduce the rent, especially given the fact that other locations in the area were going for 30% less and were in newer buildings. The response we got was that it wouldn't be possible, and that as a fund it would be preferable to have an empty building rather than suffer reduced income on the P&L. This may seem counterintuitive, but appears typical of how REITs think. [Continued below...] -------- Bilingual Social Media Software Solutions -------- Social media and mobile applications development in both English and Japanese now available from MetroWorks Ltd., here in Tokyo. We developed the major applications being used by the Metropolis magazine, and are producing solutions for foreign firms seeking to develop audiences in Japan. SNS, ranking engines, eCommerce, email marketing tracking, and of course website front ends for the iPhone and other mobile platforms. 650 engineers in Vietnam for larger off-shored projects. For inquiries, contact: sales at metroworks.jp ------------------------------------------------------------ [...Article continues] So, we started looking for other buildings. What we learned is that there are PLENTY of them available at competitive prices. Whereas we were paying JPY19,000/tsubo (3.3 sq m.) per month for a 30-year old building in a good address but 15 minutes walk from Omote Sando station in Tokyo, we quickly found 10-year old and newer buildings just 5-8 minutes from the station could be had for JPY13,000-JPY14,000/tsubo. Not only that but most landlords are also willing to give at least 6 months free rent. Now this doesn't mean completely free, because the monthly payments for a leased space also include a management fee of 20%-30%, called "kanri-hi". However, with some judicious negotiation, even the kanri-hi can be dispensed with, although typically at the expense of an increased rental deposit. So on a 2-year lease with 25% of the period rent-free, our effective rent dropped to about half of what we were paying in the old building. That's a good start. But there is more. In moving, there are three major costs to consider before looking at the cost savings at the other end: 1. Refurbishment of the building 2. Fit-out of the new premises and the actual move 3. IT costs On the refurbishment side of things, we decided to challenge the old landlord's practice of having the premises refurbished by its own in-house construction company, and we got outside quotes. Yes, the contract with the landlord did indeed say that we would let them refurbish, but it didn't say that we had to accept their pricing. Thus, armed with two alternative quotes, the company had no option but to drop their price. On the fit-out of the new building, we were lucky enough to find a company that not only does fit-outs but also premises search. They were very proactive and found us the office we wound up taking, even though we saw dozens from other real estate agents. Because that company has both business units involved, they were able to bring their prices down substantially. If any readers are interested in having the contact details for this company, please feel free to contact us at terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com. Anyway, we got two floors (130 tsubo) fitted with low-cost walls, doors, and waiting areas for the equivalent of 3 months rent. It's a good feeling to be in a nice clean space again and be saving money, and it's great for staff morale. On the IT costs side of things, the two big ticket items in most office moves are the server room and maintaining the servers. As many readers will surely know, servers are not only very noisy, they also need to be kept cool, and the best solution is to keep them in a sealed, air conditioned room. This ties up real estate and necessitates the use of an expensive add-on air conditioning system that requires "special" ducts and cabling -- giving your landlord's construction company an excuse to extract another JPY3MM-JPY5MM out of you. Of course, this all has to be removed at the end of the tenancy, which is another million yen or so. We decided to dispose almost all our servers, keeping just two units out of a dozen or so, and put everything else "up in the cloud". A local Tokyo data center, Advantage24 got our front-end applications and development servers. However, for the back office, the biggest concern was email, and in choosing a cloud provider of email -- we needed a service that is reliable, fast, compatible, and of course cheap. Originally, we were going to choose Google's Gmail service, which several related companies are using without hassle. However, we discovered that Microsoft has a service called Exchange Online and decided that with the investment already made in training and data, that we should stick with Exchange and Outlook. We then migrated about 80 email accounts and all our data to the servers in Redmond 3 weeks before our move, and upon moving to the new office, email was available complete with all data and settings just a few minutes after the Internet was connected to the premises. BTW, we used KVH's well-priced service to connect us to our fixed-line telecommunications -- much cheaper than NTT. Our subsequent experience with Exchange Online is that since the front end software resides on the PC, even though web connections maybe a little congested/slow at certain times of the day, you don't really notice it. This is the one big difference from Gmail. Google really needs a widely supported offline-capable front-end to Gmail. The outstanding thing with the Exchange Online service is the pricing. You can get full email, 25GB of storage per user, automatic backups, and spam filtering for just JPY522 per person per month. With prices like this, it's really compelling for almost any small to medium-sized company, even if you're not moving. For our case, a cost comparison for the move implications on IT and Exchange Online looks like this: CONVENTIONAL: * Server room fit-out, including air conditioner -- JPY4MM => JPY1.3MM/year (3 years amortization) * Server upgrades, firewall, and software every 3 years -- JPY1.5MM => JPY500K/year * 2 tsubo of rented space -- JPY360K/year * Server administration, backups, repair work, etc. -- JPY3.6MM/year (about 50% of the engineer's time) Total => JPY5.76MM per year approx. ACTUAL: Microsoft solution for 80 people, with 3 days/month engineer remote support => JPY1.4MM/year, which is a 75% cost reduction as well as requiring no upfront investment and little or no high-skilled people to support the system. Our conclusion is that deflation is not just happening in the rental market. With the changes in cloud computing and thanks to Google's challenging Microsoft in the price/performance category and now Microsoft's very viable response, the winners are small companies like our's who can get high-quality solutions at greatly reduced prices. ...The information janitors/ ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ SHORT TAKES Some readers have asked why we are running these health products messages. Just more ads? Well, no. Actually, we use these products ourselves, to stay competitive working and playing in Tokyo and know them to be effective. It's our way of sharing insider tips with our readers. Of course if you quote our reference number at iHerb.com, then we'd be happy about that as well... => 1. Black Cherry -- for gout relief Gout is an extremely painful inflammation of the bone joints, particularly in the big toes, hands, wrists, and other similar areas. It is caused by high levels of uric acid in the blood which have crystallized and found their way into the joints. Also known in days gone by as the "rich man's" disease, it appears to be aggravated by diet, as well as through genetic predisposition. Once you have gout, it's hard to get rid of, and options to treat it are not so great, led by NSAIDS and steroids. One natural remedy that offers many sufferers relief is Black Cherry Fruit concentrate, which acts as an anti inflammatory. Good stuff if you suffer from gout. http://bit.ly/gC3Ut7 => 2. Romantic dinner for two at 148 Hiroo This week's MMC prize is a romantic dinner for two at the wonderful Asian-Australian Fusion restaurant 148 Hiroo, courtesy of 148 Hiroo. Our congratulations to Francesco Libassi for winning a one night stay for two, including breakfast, at the Mercure Hotel Ginza Tokyo, courtesy of the Mercure Hotel Ginza Tokyo. Becoming a Metropolis Member is as simple as going to the website and signing up for the weekly newsletter. No other obligations. http://blogs.metropolis.co.jp/club/ * Many more prizes scheduled in coming weeks. * No charge to enter. * Simply receive the MMC newsletter to stay in the draw. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** --------- BIOS - Bilingual IT Systems and Support --------- BiOS full-service IT solutions has a new service. Working with our fully licenced temporary dispatch group, we are now able to provide Japan in-country workers for companies not yet registered in Japan. This innovative service is available for companies needing to hire staff for Japanese customers, but who are unable to commit to the expense and infrastructure of maintaining an office in Japan. We take care of all aspects of the employment, contracting, and dispatch -- including management of the employee. Also, if you're thinking of Cloud office solutions, take a look at Microsoft's new Business Productivity Online Standard Suite. Terrie mentions Exchange Online in this week's article, well we can do the implementations for you. For more information on this and other SI and IT services, in English or Japanese: Phone: (03) 4588-2220, Email: solutions at biosjp.com Web: www.biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ NEWS - Cold weather causes electricity output spike - EV trucks a fresh ministry project - Whaling hunt cut short, activists win? - Surprising tax ruling by Supreme Court - India-Japan trade deal big for generic drugs -> Cold weather causes electricity output spike Just how cold was in it January? Well frigid enough that power usage for households was up 3% for the year, to 83.84bn kw/hrs. Just in case you were wondering, data from the nation's 10 power utilities also shows a recovery in industrial power usage -- a good indicator of how factories are doing. Apparently the top 7 industries increased power consumption by 5.7% over last year, to 22.81bn kw/hrs. (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Feb 18, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110218D18SS087.htm -> EV trucks a fresh ministry project The Transport Ministry is financing to the tune of JPY1bn a project to develop commercially viable small and mid-sized electric trucks. The project is said to include Mitsubishi Fuso, Isuzu, Hino and UD Trucks (formerly Nissan Diesel). The Nikkei says that trucks and buses account for 7% of Japan's CO2 emissions and is one reason for the project, however, the more likely reason is that Japan wants to make sure it stays ahead of the game as short-haul trucking firms start to realize that mass produced EVs are much more economical to run. (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Feb 18, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110217D17JFA09.htm -> Whaling hunt cut short, activists win? After Fisheries Minister announced that Japan was cutting short the season's whaling hunt because of harassment by the Sea Shepherd organization, officials were careful to announce the following day that they would continue the hunt again next year. To reinforce that line, the Foreign Ministry called in Australia's Ambassador to make its displeasure of the fact that Sea Shepherd is still allowed to use Australian ports, known. ***Ed: While the bluster may save some face, it appears that the government has decided that the ill-will and cost of the whale hunt is no longer worth it. Greenpeace Japan (not to be confused with Sea Shepherd) speculated that the whaling program may be ended, as possibly indicated by government changes of personnel in various related governing bodies. That would be good.** (Source: TT commentary from theaustralian.com.au, Feb 18, 2011) http://bit.ly/h2w66H -> Surprising tax ruling by Supreme Court Although one may imagine that the Tax Office never loses a case, the Supreme Court has just handed down a very surprising ruling that will have big implications in international tax collection by Japan. The court said that the son of money lender Takefuji, Toshiki Takei, was wrongly billed JPY133bn for gift and penalty taxes on a JPY160bn gift of shares made by his parents while he was living in Hong Kong and was resident there. The Japanese Tax Office says that he lived in Hong Kong purely to evade tax, but the Supreme Court said that nonetheless since the shares were in an off-shore company and he did live most of the time in Hong Kong, it was illegal to levy Japanese taxes on Takei. ***Ed: Interestingly, after being hit by the Supreme Court in the opposite direction several years ago for refunds on exorbitant interest rates, which caused Takefuji to seek bankruptcy protection, the company is now claiming refunds on taxes paid on the amounts that are having to be refunded.** (Source: TT commentary from ft.com, Feb 19, 2011) http://bit.ly/i6wgxq -> India-Japan trade deal big for generic drugs The Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) signed between Japan and India this last week looks like it could open the spigot for low-cost Indian generic drugs to flood the Japanese pharmaceuticals market. The current 4%-10% duty will drop to zero, and import and standards compliance procedures will be significantly eased as well. Japan's generics market is said to be worth around JPY600bn and is rising. ***Ed: Of course this could only happen after Daiichi Sankyo, Japan's third largest drug company, had fully digested Ranbaxy, India's largest pharma firm and a leading producer of generics. Tough for the little guys, though.** (Source: TT commentary from thehindu.com, Feb 16, 2011) http://www.thehindu.com/business/Industry/article1462359.ece NOTE: Broken links Many online news sources remove their articles after just a few days of posting them, thus breaking our links -- we apologize for the inconvenience. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** -------- Essential Business Reference in English ---------- If you're a manager or director of a company in Japan, you need these references with detailed explanations in English!!! - Japan Staff Employment Law Guide - 1st Edition Published June, 2010 (JPY 21,000) - Japan Master Tax Guide 2010/11 Published July, 2010 (JPY 18,375) - Japan Corporation Law Guide - 2nd Edition Published November, 2010 (JPY 22,050) *Above prices include tax * As a limited time offer for readers of this newsletter, orders received by November 30 will earn discounts: 1 title: 5% off, more than 2 titles: 10% off. For more details: support at cch.co.jp, call 03-6234-3980. Web: https://www.cch-japan.jp/contents/register/form www.cch-japan.jp ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ CANDIDATE ROUND UP/VACANCIES => BiOS, a Division of the LINC Media group, is actively marketing the following positions for customers setting up or expanding in Japan, as well as other employers of bilinguals. ** HIGHLIGHTED POSITION We are currently looking for a senior infrastructure engineer to work on-site at our busy international client in Daimon, Tokyo area. This is a great opportunity for those who have more than 5 years of overall IT infrastructure support (desktop support, server/network management). The candidate will take a lead in various support plans and projects, therefore, high motivation, complete tasks on time and take a leadership role required. Business level Japanese and English is required. Remuneration is JPY6m ? JPY7.5m depending on your experience and skill level. ** POSITIONS VACANT - Network Architect, Market Data, JPY10m ? JPY18m - Helpdesk Engineer, Medical, JPY3.5m - JPY4.8m - Datacenter Engineer, ibank, JPY3.5m ? JPY4.5m - User Support Engineer, Global IT, JPY3.5m ? JPY4.5m - Sales Staff, Embedded Antenna co, JPY7m ? JPY9m Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: kenji.sakota at biosjp.com ** BiOS Job Mail Every 2 weeks BiOS sends out a regular communication to its job seeking candidates, called BiOS Job Mail. Every edition carries a list of BiOS's current and most up-to-date vacancies, with each entry featuring a short job description and a direct link to the main entry on the BiOS home page. Regardless of whether you are unemployed and searching, thinking about a career change, or just curious to know if there is something out there that might suit you better, the BiOS Job Mail newsletter is an easy and convenient way for you to stay informed. If you would like to register for the BiOS Job Mail, or to find out more, please email kenji.sakota at biosjp.com. Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: kenji.sakota at biosjp.com. ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ UPCOMING EVENTS/ANNOUNCEMENTS No announcements this week. This weekend's Entrepreneur Seminar was very well attended, though. Over 23 people looking to start or grow their companies came to the session. The next seminar will be scheduled some time in April. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CORRECTIONS/FEEDBACK In this section we run comments and corrections submitted by readers. We encourage you to spot our mistakes and amplify our points, by email, to editors at terrie.com. *** No corrections/comments this week *********************************************************** END SUBSCRIBERS: 8,751 members as of February 20, 2010 (We purge our list regularly.) +++ ABOUT US STAFF Written by: Terrie Lloyd (terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com) HELP: E-mail Terrie-request at mailman.japaninc.com with the word 'help' in the subject or body (don't include the quotes), and you will get back a message with instructions. FEEDBACK Send letters (Feedback, Inquiries & Information) to the editor to terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com. ADVERTISING INFORMATION For more information on advertising in this newsletter, Contact ads at japaninc.com. SUBSCRIBE Get Terrie's Take by giving your name and email address at http://www.japaninc.com/newsletters/free_sign_up, or go straight to Mailman at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ Copyright 2011 Japan Inc. Communications Inc. ----------------- Japan Inc opens up Japan ---------------- J at pan Inc is Japan's only independently published English- language business website. Authoritatively chronicling online the business trends in Japan, each posting brings you in-depth analysis of business, people and technology in the world's second largest economy. Visit www.japaninc.com for the best business insight on Japan available. ----------------------------------------------------------- -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From terrie at mailman.japaninc.com Mon Feb 28 01:05:34 2011 From: terrie at mailman.japaninc.com (Terrie's Take) Date: Mon, 28 Feb 2011 01:05:34 +0900 Subject: Terrie's Take 603 -- Increasing Professionalism of Company Boards, e-biz news from Japan Message-ID: * * * * * * * * * T E R R I E 'S T A K E * * * * * * * A weekly roundup of news & information from Terrie Lloyd. (http://www.terrie.com) General Edition Sunday, February 27, 2011, Issue No. 603 +++ INDEX - What's New -- Increasing external directors at public companies - News -- Cheap web English lessons with Philippines - Candidate Roundup/Vacancies - Upcoming Events - Corrections/Feedback - News Credits SUBSCRIBE to, UNSUBSCRIBE from Terrie's Take at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take, or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ ---------- UPGRADE TODAY TO PBXL IP TELEPHONY ---------- PBXL has the solution for your office. PBXL will purchase and dispose of your outdated, unsupported phone system and provide you with state of the art Cisco VoIP telephony. PBXL provides the features and flexibility your business needs to compete including computer telephony, iPhone integration, proactive monitoring, and bundled support and maintenance. For additional information call us anytime at 03-4550-1600, e-mail us at info at pbxl.jp or visit http://en.pbxl.co.jp/ ----------- PBXL is BUSINESS COMMUNICATIONS ------------ +++ WHAT'S NEW In the Nikkei last week was a short round-table article between newspaper reporters speculating if activist funds were a thing of the past in Japan. We were surprised to see a comment in the article that Steel Partners, frequently in the news over the last five years for its various jousts with Sapporo Holdings (the beer company) and other firms, is said to be looking to pull out of Japan. Apparently the company is down to just four people, less than half the original crew when the fund was working hard to extract more value out of its target shareholdings. Activist funds come in all shapes and sizes but the basic idea is that instead of buying and holding shares, and hoping that the target company management will do the right thing and pay out good returns, the funds make sure that their voice is heard and push the companies to look after the shareholders, or else... Generally that "or else" would mean votes against the re-election of the board of directors and the loading of nomination slates with new directors who are more shareholder friendly. It's hard to say if activist funds are a good thing or not. >From the point of view of free markets and the right for shareholders to expect strong returns, they certainly do bring benefits to fellow shareholders, such as retirees, who are hoping to make a living from returns on their holdings. But at the same time, is it the fund or the management who should have final say over just how much cash is kept in the company war chest to see it over hard times or to be ready for an M&A fight at some point, versus simply shelling it out to shareholders as dividends? In a free western stock market one can easily say that shareholders come first, but we think it's safe to say that in Japan pretty much every employer, employee, and government official believes that the employees (and the employee-directors) come first and that companies are supposed to keep their staff economically safe and sound. This is a social compact that companies have made with government and the public at large, and shareholders are perceived as just coming along for the ride. If they get a good pay-out, that is luck, not a right. Socialism? Not really, it's just a different take on capitalism and the feeling that shareholders do little for their returns since most public companies are supposed to be out past the point of high risk. [Continued below...] -------- Bilingual Social Media Software Solutions -------- Social media and mobile applications development in both English and Japanese now available from MetroWorks Ltd., here in Tokyo. We developed the major applications being used by the Metropolis magazine, and are producing solutions for foreign firms seeking to develop audiences in Japan. SNS, ranking engines, eCommerce, email marketing tracking, and of course website front ends for the iPhone and other mobile platforms. 650 engineers in Vietnam for larger off-shored projects. For inquiries, contact: sales at metroworks.jp ------------------------------------------------------------ [...Article continues] The problem of course is that if there is no shareholder activism, and the status quo is allowed to continue over succeeding generations of directors in major companies, then the attitudes of those boards become entrenched and inbred. Managers come to look at the public companies they are entrusted to run as their own fiefdoms, to the detriment of the true owners, the shareholders. This results in massive retirement bonuses and other benefits for employees, and parsimonious pay-outs to the shareholders, to the point where one would wonder why you'd even want to hold shares in such companies. It can also result in defacto takeovers of the company without any pay-out whatsoever coming back to the shareholders -- witness the Tokyo Style Vs. M&A Consulting Inc.court case back in 2004 in which Tokyo Style's CEO admitted making major investments of company money without consulting the board. Dealing with self-serving directors is no doubt a point that Steel Partners wanted to make in its fight with Sapporo Holdings, too. So is the short renaissance in shareholder activism in Japan dead? In the form of Steel Holdings style funds, quite possibly. However, as others are proving to their success, there is another way: the more involved and patient manning of public boards of directors with external directors who are experts in various fields and whose unquestioned expertise means that they bring more daily value to board meetings than without them, and thus cause those companies to want to work with their outside stake holders. These are typically known as engagement-focused funds, and the Nikkei names some foreign investors using this more collaborative style. They include Ichigo, Asuka Asset Management Ltd., Taiyo Pacific Partners, and now a new joint fund put together by Tokio Marine and UK-based Governance for Owners LLP. The key to collaborative participation on public company boards is of course the quality and number of external directors serving on those boards. Currently, most Japanese firms either avoid bringing in external directors, or try to bring in those who are "safe" and unlikely to rock the boat. As a result, in 2007 public firms had an average of just 1.5 external directors for every 10 internal directors. This is significantly less than the more than 50% of external directors for companies in the USA, for example. Now, in all fairness, it could be said that the availability of skilled locally available external directors is limited. However, being a director can be fraught with legal risk and given that the boards one would be joining might not necessarily operate professionally themselves, this is an easy explanation of the lack of demand on both sides. We got a taste of the issue of risk as a director when sitting as adviser to LiveDoor's board in 2008 after Horie-mon got arrested for allegedly window dressing the firm's accounts. But it could be that help is on the way. In November 2009, Nick Benes a well-known M&A and corporate governance consultant and Takaaki Wakasugi, Emeritus Professor at Tokyo University and currently Professor of Economics at Tokyo Keizai University, got together with three others to form the Board Director Training Institute of Japan (BDTI). The organization is a non-profit foundation dedicated to the improvement of corporate governance in Japan and offers training on corporate governance, effective board practices, corporate and securities law, and related topics. Probably not a moment too soon, given the widening gap between Japan and the rest of the first world in terms of best practice in corporate governance. In fact, a recent survey by BDTI found the following points: 1. Just 50% of directors and executive officers at listed companies are willing to claim that they know much about corporate governance and the Company Law. 2. Only about 30-40% of listed companies offer any sort of training at all on these subjects - and most training programs are quite inadequate (e.g., a few lectures by a lawyer). 3. Most sitting directors and Executive Officers admit they need to learn more: 69% of them think that directors should receive training and over 90% of directors and EOs at all companies think that their subordinate managers (General Managers and Section Chiefs) should receive such training. Benes' LinkedIn resume shows that as of last year he also has been sitting on the "Liason Committee on Corporate Governance" for the Financial Services Agency (FSA), from which advice flows to government for an upcoming revision of the Company Law of Japan. It's great to see this approach being taken on improving how Japanese boards are managed. Instead of confronting them and forcing change as some funds have been wont to do, the BDTI is taking the much more pragmatic approach of co-opting participation by holding up a quality standard for directors that will no doubt become a certification. And Japanese firms LOVE certifications. Right now the idea of trained and certified directors has little recognition in Japanese corporations, however like all needed standards, as more and more companies sign on and agree to submit their directors for training then at some point a tipping point will be reached. Think of how well ISO standards have permeated Japanese businesses and that they are now a "compulsory" mark of process quality. In the USA, a similar organization called the National Association of Corporate Directors (NACD), counts about 25% of all Fortune 500 companies as members and has been highly influential in setting best practice baselines. If the BDTI program catches on in Japan, and we expect that it will, it will also open up an interesting new category of employment: that of professional external directors. So common overseas, we may start to see suitably qualified individuals serving on multiple boards as external experts who can help those boards raise their standards and their overall responsiveness to shareholder's and the markets in general. Yes, it will take a while, but once the largest firms embrace the idea, the smaller ones will have little reason not to follow. You can find out more about BDTI at http://bdti.or.jp/english/. ...The information janitors/ ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ SHORT TAKES => 1. Hotel stay for two at Royal Park Shiodome Tower Hotel This week's MMC prize is not one to be sneezed at (even though it is hay fever season...), Metropolis is offering a free night's stay for two at the ritzy Royal Park Shiodome Hotel in Shimbashi/Shiodome. Includes breakfast. And our congratulations to Nikola Nikolovski for winning the romantic dinner for two at the wonderful Asian-Australian Fusion restaurant 148 Hiroo, courtesy of 148 Hiroo. Becoming a Metropolis Member is as simple as going to the website and signing up for the weekly newsletter. No other obligations. http://blogs.metropolis.co.jp/club/ * Many more prizes scheduled in coming weeks. * No charge to enter. * Simply receive the MMC newsletter to stay in the draw. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** --------- BIOS - Bilingual IT Systems and Support --------- BiOS full-service IT solutions has a new service. Working with our fully licenced temporary dispatch group, we are now able to provide Japan in-country workers for companies not yet registered in Japan. This innovative service is available for companies needing to hire staff for Japanese customers, but who are unable to commit to the expense and infrastructure of maintaining an office in Japan. We take care of all aspects of the employment, contracting, and dispatch -- including management of the employee. Also, if you're thinking of Cloud office solutions, take a look at Microsoft's new Business Productivity Online Standard Suite. Terrie mentions Exchange Online in TT602, and we can do the implementations for you. For more information on this and other SI and IT services, in English or Japanese: Phone: (03) 4588-2220, Email: solutions at biosjp.com Web: www.biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ NEWS - Online music sales in trouble? - Cheap web English lessons catch on - China investments in Japanese companies surges - Japanese companies sitting on lots of cash - Survey: Japanese kids highly pessimistic -> Online music sales in trouble? Uh, oh, maybe the shrinkage in the CD youth market for music is more than just a move to online sales. Seems like the market for online music is also shrinking. The RIAJ published figures showing that online music sales via cell phones fell 6% in 2010, to JPY74.74bn, and sales for all online music fell 5% to JPY85.99bn. ***Ed: Is this a demographic trend, or simply a reflection of the fact that kids are short of cash, just as their parents are? Our guess is that latter -- kids can't live without music, and iTunes ensures that there is no shortage of supply.** (Source: TT commentary from nikkei.com, Feb 26, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/fr/tnks/Nni20110225D25JFA09.htm -> Cheap web English lessons catch on A company called RareJob Inc. has a hit on its hands, with JPY100 for 25 minutes of English conversation for company workers and children with teachers down in the Philippines. This is an amazingly low price and we have heard that the company has as many as 50,000 people signed up for the service. The lessons are conducted over Skype and sell in packages of JPY5,000/month. ***Ed: While this seems like an idea whose time has come, we also heard that some of the excitement over the service lies in the fact that some of the conversations are rather more adult oriented than they are focused on English. Nonetheless, this kind of service should see rapid expansion to other English speaking countries of the world, with marketplaces setting the actual fee rates to be charged. Our guess is that retirees in the USA and elsewhere will wind up being the most popular online English teaching providers.** (Source: TT commentary from nikkei.com, Feb 24, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/fr/tnks/Nni20110225D25HH747.htm -> China investments in Japanese companies surges While it may not be very popular locally, Chinese investment in Japanese listed companies seems destined to continue growing substantially. The Wall Street Journal has said in an article that Chinese government investors have more than doubled their holdings of Japanese listed firms in the last year, to JPY1.6trn (US$19.4bn) -- still modest, when you think about it. ***Ed: This news is of course stressing Japanese commentators, who worry that at worst the Chinese could threaten to dump Japanese stocks en masse as foreign policy leverage, and at best, some Japanese firms could fall under the influence of Chinese investors. Our feeling is that strategically sensitive firms may in fact wind up being subject to legislation that will prevent a build up of foreign holdings, much the same as holdings in TV companies is limited to 20% today.** (Source: TT commentary from reuters.com, Feb 25, 2011) http://reut.rs/he0SaC -> Japanese companies sitting on lots of cash A very good commentary from Tokyo-based Darrel Whitten for SeekingAlpha.com, gives an overview of what Japanese companies should and probably will do with their ever-growing pile of cash. Apparently as of September 2010, publicly listed companies were able to build up a cash mountain worth around JPY64trn (US$780bn). Taking into account all the major unlisted companies covered in the Tankan business survey, then Japanese firms had more than JPY202trn (US$2.4trn) of cash on hand. Since this was created by slashing payrolls and capital spending, investors wonder if M&A or share buybacks are most likely to happen over the next 12 months. (Source: TT commentary from seekingalpha.com, Feb 27, 2011) http://bit.ly/g1J2C6 -> Survey: Japanese kids highly pessimistic A survey by Tokyo-based Japan Youth Research Institute has found that Japanese high-school kids are highly pessimistic about themselves. In a poll of 7,000 kids in Japan, the USA, China, and South Korea, the Institute found that just 7.5% of local kids felt they were "a valuable person". In contrast, 57% of those in the USA, 42% in China, and 20% in South Korea felt they were valuable. In much the same vein, 71% of Japanese girls thought they are overweight, despite the fact that they had an average BMI of 10% less than other countries. For South Korean girls, the number was 57%, followed by 39% in China and 29% in the USA. (Source: TT commentary from reuters.com, Feb 25, 2011) http://reut.rs/e9Blua NOTE: Broken links Many online news sources remove their articles after just a few days of posting them, thus breaking our links -- we apologize for the inconvenience. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** -------- Essential Business Reference in English ---------- If you're a manager or director of a company in Japan, you need these references with detailed explanations in English!!! - Japan Staff Employment Law Guide - 1st Edition Published June, 2010 (JPY 21,000) - Japan Master Tax Guide 2010/11 Published July, 2010 (JPY 18,375) - Japan Corporation Law Guide - 2nd Edition Published November, 2010 (JPY 22,050) *Above prices include tax * As a limited time offer for readers of this newsletter, orders received by November 30 will earn discounts: 1 title: 5% off, more than 2 titles: 10% off. For more details: support at cch.co.jp, call 03-6234-3980. Web: https://www.cch-japan.jp/contents/register/form www.cch-japan.jp ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ CANDIDATE ROUND UP/VACANCIES => BiOS, a Division of the LINC Media group, is actively marketing the following positions for customers setting up or expanding in Japan, as well as other employers of bilinguals. ** HIGHLIGHTED POSITION We are currently looking for a Senior Network Engineer to work onsite at a global investment bank in Tokyo through one of the largest IT services company in Tokyo. Successful candidates should have experience in network system design in or with financial/banking companies, with strong knowledge and skill of market data system configuration. CCIE holder preferred. The candidate will work as a contract employee for up to 6 months as a form of probation, then will convert to a permanent employee. Remuneration is JPY10m - JPY15m depending on your experience and skill level. ** POSITIONS VACANT - Wintel Integration Engineer, BiOS, JPY5m - JPY8m - Sales Team Account Manager, BiOS, JPY3.5m - JPY4.5m - Datacenter Engineer, ibank, JPY3.5m - JPY4.5m - Senior Linux Eng, Embedded Mobile Sw, JPY8m - JPY10m - Multi-Media Developer, Embedded Mobile Sw, JPY8m - JPY10m Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: kenji.sakota at biosjp.com ** BiOS Job Mail Every 2 weeks BiOS sends out a regular communication to its job seeking candidates, called BiOS Job Mail. Every edition carries a list of BiOS's current and most up-to-date vacancies, with each entry featuring a short job description and a direct link to the main entry on the BiOS home page. Regardless of whether you are unemployed and searching, thinking about a career change, or just curious to know if there is something out there that might suit you better, the BiOS Job Mail newsletter is an easy and convenient way for you to stay informed. If you would like to register for the BiOS Job Mail, or to find out more, please email kenji.sakota at biosjp.com. Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: kenji.sakota at biosjp.com. ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ UPCOMING EVENTS/ANNOUNCEMENTS ------------- Entrepreneur Seminar in Osaka --------------- Terrie Lloyd has spent 27 years learning how to compete with Japan's major companies. Using foreign technology and foreign employees, he has created more than 15 companies, 6 of which were successful enough to be sold at good returns to the investors. Mr. Lloyd will share the entrepreneurial process, and how foreign connections and ideas can make it possible for small companies to become successful in Japan. He speaks at a very practical level about the good and the bad in building and running a company. Date: Thursday, March 10 Venue: Ritz Carlton Osaka, Terrace room 4F Access Map: http://bit.ly/dKd73I Time: 12:00PM ~ 14:00PM (reception opens at 11:30AM) Format: Buffet Luncheon Presentation Organized and Sponsored: Kansai Canada Business Association Co-sponsored: Osaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry KCBA/OCCI Member Price: 4,500yen Non-Member Price: 5,500yen *The price includes lunch. Please pay at the reception of this event. Closing date for attendee registration: March 7 * Cancellation after Closing Date is subject to 100% cancellation fee. For more info, contact Yamada at 06-6537-1792 by fax. ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CORRECTIONS/FEEDBACK In this section we run comments and corrections submitted by readers. We encourage you to spot our mistakes and amplify our points, by email, to editors at terrie.com. *** No corrections/comments this week *********************************************************** END SUBSCRIBERS: 8,753 members as of February 27, 2010 (We purge our list regularly.) +++ ABOUT US STAFF Written by: Terrie Lloyd (terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com) HELP: E-mail Terrie-request at mailman.japaninc.com with the word 'help' in the subject or body (don't include the quotes), and you will get back a message with instructions. FEEDBACK Send letters (Feedback, Inquiries & Information) to the editor to terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com. ADVERTISING INFORMATION For more information on advertising in this newsletter, Contact ads at japaninc.com. SUBSCRIBE Get Terrie's Take by giving your name and email address at http://www.japaninc.com/newsletters/free_sign_up, or go straight to Mailman at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ Copyright 2011 Japan Inc. Communications Inc. ----------------- Japan Inc opens up Japan ---------------- J at pan Inc is Japan's only independently published English- language business website. Authoritatively chronicling online the business trends in Japan, each posting brings you in-depth analysis of business, people and technology in the world's second largest economy. Visit www.japaninc.com for the best business insight on Japan available. ----------------------------------------------------------- -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From terrie at mailman.japaninc.com Mon Mar 7 00:56:13 2011 From: terrie at mailman.japaninc.com (Terrie's Take) Date: Mon, 7 Mar 2011 00:56:13 +0900 Subject: Terrie's Take 604 -- Why Japan Needs the TPP Trade Pact, e-biz news from Japan Message-ID: * * * * * * * * * T E R R I E 'S T A K E * * * * * * * A weekly roundup of news & information from Terrie Lloyd. (http://www.terrie.com) General Edition Sunday, March 06, 2011, Issue No. 604 +++ INDEX - What's New -- Why Japan Needs the TPP Trade Pact - News -- 'Wahaha', More than Just a Chinese Yoghurt Joke - Candidate Roundup/Vacancies - Upcoming Events - Corrections/Feedback -- English lessons with Philippines - News Credits SUBSCRIBE to, UNSUBSCRIBE from Terrie's Take at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take, or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ ---------- UPGRADE TODAY TO PBXL IP TELEPHONY ---------- PBXL has the solution for your office. PBXL will purchase and dispose of your outdated, unsupported phone system and provide you with state of the art Cisco VoIP telephony. PBXL provides the features and flexibility your business needs to compete including computer telephony, iPhone integration, proactive monitoring, and bundled support and maintenance. For additional information call us anytime at 03-4550-1600, e-mail us at info at pbxl.jp or visit http://en.pbxl.co.jp/ ----------- PBXL is BUSINESS COMMUNICATIONS ------------ +++ WHAT'S NEW In 2011 we may see a historic opening up of the Japanese domestic market to agricultural imports, via the Trans-Pacific Partnership free trade pact, more commonly known as TPP. PM Naoto Kan shocked many conservatives in October last year when he announced that his government would bring Japan into the TPP discussions as early as this year (2011), making a final decision about whether to join the framework by June. In making this announcement Kan was effectively attacking the farming political bloc, who have scuttled every other attempt over the last 30 years to open up Japan's agricultural sector to foreign competition. He is doing this because unlike the past, when the only issue at stake was high consumer prices -- and no one really cares about the consumers -- the problem is now that the bilateral nature of TPP may effectively give competing countries a huge price advantage over Japanese firms in autos, electronics, and other traditional export sectors. >From what we can see, Kan appears to be staking his political future into making TPP happen, and is really digging in his heels despite demonstrations by farming groups and remonstrations by Farm Ministry officials. Short of losing a no-confidence motion, he appears ready to tough it out and get Japan signed up. Kan certainly has a sense of history in his mission, stating shortly after his re-election over Ozawa last September that TPP is like "the third kaikoku (opening of Japan to the outside world), following the Meiji Restoration (of 1868) and defeat in World War II." So what is the TPP and is it really a significant event? [Continued below...] -------- Bilingual Social Media Software Solutions -------- Social media and mobile applications development in both English and Japanese now available from MetroWorks Ltd., here in Tokyo. We developed the major applications being used by the Metropolis magazine, and are producing solutions for foreign firms seeking to develop audiences in Japan. SNS, ranking engines, eCommerce, email marketing tracking, and of course website front ends for the iPhone and other mobile platforms. 650 engineers in Vietnam for larger off-shored projects. For enquiries, contact: sales at metroworks.jp ------------------------------------------------------------ [...Article continues] The pact actually started way back in 1983, as an agreement between Asia's only two native English-speaking countries, Australia and New Zealand, as a sort of recognition that the two were close enough that they could almost be one country never mind the friendly competitiveness and the sheep jokes... Fast forward to 2000, and NZ, Singapore, the USA, Vietnam, and some other countries around the pacific rim started to sign free trade pacts with each other, leading to four of those countries forming the current TPP network between 2006 and 2009. The four are: Brunei, Chile, New Zealand, and Singapore. Advanced negotiations happening to bring in Australia, Malaysia, Peru, the United States and Vietnam. What is interesting is that those 9 countries account for about 28% of nominal global GDP and 26% of Japan's total exports by volume. So involvement with the TPP is an obvious trade retention exercise -- in that it provides Japan with an inside track to defend exports against the predations of competitors who are moving on their own FTAs with individual TPP members, most notably the USA. Indeed, it is one particular such competitor, South Korea, that most appears to be prodding Japan into action. The fact is that Korea over the last ten years has whipped Japan's a** in home electronics, semiconductors, automobiles, clothing, and a variety of other sectors, partly due to the devaluation of its currency, but also partly because the government there was quick to realize that to survive they had to open up, get rid of damaging protectionism, and excel only in the industries that they chose to put their minds to. Thus it was that in 2003 Seoul put into place an Free Trade Agreement (FTA) "road map" that caused it to start aggressively negotiating non-tariff access to other markets in return for access to its own. As a result, the nation already has a US FTA, although not yet ratified, and will see a European Union (EU) FTA go into effect from this June. Eventually Korea expects to have around 90% of its exports being tariff-free. As an example of the impact this will have on Japan, take LCD TVs. Right now Samsung makes LCD TVs which are technically as good as Sony, Sharp, and other Japanese brands and offers a price just 5%-10% less than the more Japanese famous brands. However, shortly, Samsung's sales in the EU will be free of 10% tariffs. This effectively will make Samsung products hundreds of euros cheaper than their Japanese competitors and the results on Japanese exporters will be obvious. Adding further pressure on the Japanese government is the fact that the USA is expected to join the TPP before it hosts the next APEC conference in Honolulu in November this year. For the USA to be part of TPP, along with the Koreans and their soon-to-be-active FTA, means that once again, Japan's products will be tariffed while their competitors have open access to the US market. That plus the ongoing high yen rates could be disastrous. Keidanren, the Japan Business Federation, is clearly very worried about the implications of TPP, and is pushing the government to move as quickly as possible to join the pact. It says that TPP, combined with proposed corporate tax cuts, will keep manufacturing in Japan and reverse the current hollowing out. They also say that domestic capital investment will rise about 60% over the next 10 years. The Trade Ministry (METI) likewise says that not being in TPP will severely hurt exports of autos, machinery, and electronics and push down GDP in 2020 by JPY10.5trn, causing more than 800,000 jobs to be lost. Thus, while it is obvious that Japan should be part of the TPP for the sake of its major exporters, why is it that the Japanese are dragging their feet? The answer is the nation's conservatives, who have long used farmers as a symbol of traditional core values and something to be preserved at all costs. They say that TPP will lead to the loss of Japanese cultural heritage if the farming sector is fully exposed to the ravages of international competition. Although bewildering to a non-Japanese, the elevation of agriculture and farming to something almost sacred is a tactic that has worked in the past, as is obvious from the lop-sided representation of sparsely populated farming electorates in parliament and the 700% price supports for rice. But as Kan's government has been saying, now is the time to stop protecting just 1.5% of the economy, for the sake of the health of much bigger sectors such as manufacturing and financial services. It is our take that farming will not be damaged to the extent that the conservatives make out. Recent trends in Grown-in-Japan fruit, veges, and rice exports to Asia have gone to show that Japanese produce can get the high prices needed, in return for promising unyielding quality in taste and health. Evidence of this re-pricing working can even be found here in Japan. Because of the various food scandals associated with China, Japanese housewives now willingly pay JPY200 for a solitary clump of garlic or ginger than JPY150 for a whole bag of the Chinese-sourced product. The farming sector just needs to understand how to market better, and they can make a killing through exports and value-added domestic sales, rather than fighting over a shrinking local market. What's more, the whole farming sector is in dire crisis anyway -- so what is being defended here? Basically some idealized embedded in a bureaucrats imagination? The average age of farmers is in their late 60's, well past the point where they are physically capable of peak output, and many of the nation's farms are lying fallow because there is no one to work them. In fact, we have two separate non-farming friends (one is a foreigner) who have been able to buy up fallow land at ridiculously cheap prices, simply because it was designated farming only and they have pledged to farm it -- even if only part-time. We believe that TPP will be the catalyst for some really major change for Japan, just as Kan predicts, and is an opportunity not to be missed. While the media speculate that Kan's government will fall any day soon, we sincerely hope that the PM's famous stubborness wins out at least until the end of the year, and that he gets Japan on track for the TPP. Japan needs the gaiatsu to get itself back on track internationally and to flush out the internal decay brought on by its many self-interested political groups. ...The information janitors/ ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ SHORT TAKES => 1. Adidas MI Performance custom shoes This week's MMC prize is a pair of highly desirable MI Performance custom shoes from Adidas. Go to the Metropolis MMC club page for more details. And our congratulations to Mike Bagosy for winning the free night's stay for two at the Royal Park Shiodome Hotel in Shimbashi/Shiodome. Becoming a Metropolis Member is as simple as going to the website and signing up for the weekly newsletter. No other obligations. http://blogs.metropolis.co.jp/club/ * Many more prizes scheduled in coming weeks. * No charge to enter. * Simply receive the MMC newsletter to stay in the draw. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** --------- BIOS - Bilingual IT Systems and Support --------- BiOS full-service IT solutions has a new service. Working with our fully licenced temporary dispatch group, we are now able to provide Japan in-country workers for companies not yet registered in Japan. This innovative service is available for companies needing to hire staff for Japanese customers, but who are unable to commit to the expense and infrastructure of maintaining an office in Japan. We take care of all aspects of the employment, contracting, and dispatch -- including management of the employee. Also, if you're thinking of Cloud office solutions, take a look at Microsoft's new Business Productivity Online Standard Suite. Terrie mentions Exchange Online in TT602, and we can do the implementations for you. For more information on this and other SI and IT services, in English or Japanese: Phone: (03) 4588-2220, Email: solutions at biosjp.com Web: www.biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ NEWS - JA tries to fend off TPP with new collectives - Radio media ownership rules change - China firm to buy out yoghurt maker? - Marc Faber talks up Japan - 25% increase in suicides over youth joblessness -> JA tries to fend off TPP with new collectives Small minds miss the point, and Japan's agricultural cooperative, JA-Zenchu, has a collective mind which is smaller than most. Threatened by the government's intent to join the TPP pact, JA is saying that a better target is to upsize the nation's many tiny farm plots into larger tracts, to make them more efficient. Currently the average farm plot is 1.27 hectares, whereas the JA proposal is to "collectivize" those plots into larger farms of 20-30 hectares. ***Ed: How this will work and why it will be better for Japan than the TPP is not spelled out, but somehow JA thinks it will help improve agricultural output. Instead, what we can see it as yet another level of bureaucracy, which will lower feelings of commitment by farmers, and most likely lead to even more inefficiency than is the case now...** (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Mar 5, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110304D04JFA27.htm -> Radio media ownership rules change Just goes to show that the bureaucrats know how to be flexible when the writing is on the wall. Apparently the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications will from late June allow any single company to own up to four radio stations, rather than a single station as is now the case. The relaxation of the media ownership rule has come about because many of the nation's radio stations are in severe financial condition and need rehabilitation or they will go under. (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Mar 4, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110304D04JF519.htm -> China firm to buy out yoghurt maker? The chairman of the improbably-named Wahaha group, a person who also happens to be China's richest person, says that the group is considering buying a "Japanese yoghurt maker" without saying which one. Wahaha controls about 9.7% of the Chinese dairy products market and is the third largest player in that sector. Apparently the Wahaha boss likes Japanese food know-how and product taste and wants to use the acquisition to boost market share in China. ***Ed: One hopes that the target Japanese firm has done its homework on Wahaha. The company just settled a court battle with Danone over charges that they took products owned by a j/v with Danone and sold them through their own private network. This may not be a partner the Japanese want to have on their side.** (Source: TT commentary from bloomberg.com, Mar 6, 2011) http://bloom.bg/eXybT0 -> Marc Faber talks up Japan Well-known HK investor, Marc Faber, has commented at a conference in Tokyo that Japan stocks are looking very favorable over the next ten years. His rationale is interesting. He says that because public debt is so high, the government will be forced to "print money" to monetize the debt. In doing this, it will cause the yen to fall, boost earnings for exporters, and consequently boost stocks. (Source: TT commentary from barrons.com, Mar 4, 2011) http://bit.ly/e5KTML -> 25% increase in suicides over youth joblessness One of the terrible fall-outs of the global job squeeze is the increased number of young people in their twenties who commit suicide after failing to cope with the feelings of inadequacy and depression. According to police statistics, there was a 25% increase in the number of suicides, up to 153 deaths, of young people after failing to find a job. On a slightly more positive note, the overall number of suicides in Japan dropped for the first time in nine years, to below 32,000. (Source: TT commentary from reuters.com, Mar 3, 2011) http://reut.rs/gXVs61 NOTE: Broken links Many online news sources remove their articles after just a few days of posting them, thus breaking our links -- we apologize for the inconvenience. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** -------- Essential Business Reference in English ---------- If you're a manager or director of a company in Japan, you need these references with detailed explanations in English!!! - Japan Staff Employment Law Guide - 1st Edition Published June, 2010 (JPY 21,000) - Japan Master Tax Guide 2010/11 Published July, 2010 (JPY 18,375) - Japan Corporation Law Guide - 2nd Edition Published November, 2010 (JPY 22,050) *Above prices include tax For more details: support at cch.co.jp, call 03-6234-3980. Web: https://www.cch-japan.jp/contents/register/form www.cch-japan.jp ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ CANDIDATE ROUND UP/VACANCIES => BiOS, a Division of the LINC Media group, is actively marketing the following positions for customers setting up or expanding in Japan, as well as other employers of bilinguals. ** HIGHLIGHTED POSITION We are currently looking for a Senior Network Engineer to work onsite at a global investment bank in Tokyo through one of the largest IT services company in Tokyo. Successful candidates should have experience in network system design in or with financial/banking companies, with strong knowledge and skill of market data system configuration. CCIE holder preferred. The candidate will work as a contract employee for up to 6 months as a form of probation, then will convert to a permanent employee. Remuneration is JPY10m - JPY15m depending on your experience and skill level. ** POSITIONS VACANT - Junior PM/Team Leader (infra), Pharma, JPY5m ? JPY6.5m - Sales Mgr (Measurement Equip), Maker, JPY2m ? JPY2.5m - Procurement Officer x2, iBank JPY4.0m ? JPY5.0m - Multimedia Engineer, global IT co., JPY8m ? JPY10m - Senior Linux Engineer, global IT co., JPY8m ? JPY10m Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: kenji.sakota at biosjp.com ** BiOS Job Mail Every 2 weeks BiOS sends out a regular communication to its job seeking candidates, called BiOS Job Mail. Every edition carries a list of BiOS's current and most up-to-date vacancies, with each entry featuring a short job description and a direct link to the main entry on the BiOS home page. Regardless of whether you are unemployed and searching, thinking about a career change, or just curious to know if there is something out there that might suit you better, the BiOS Job Mail newsletter is an easy and convenient way for you to stay informed. If you would like to register for the BiOS Job Mail, or to find out more, please email kenji.sakota at biosjp.com. Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: kenji.sakota at biosjp.com. ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ UPCOMING EVENTS/ANNOUNCEMENTS ------------- Entrepreneur Seminar in Osaka --------------- Terrie Lloyd has spent 27 years learning how to compete with Japan's major companies. Using foreign technology and foreign employees, he has created more than 15 companies, 6 of which were successful enough to be sold at good returns to the investors. Mr. Lloyd will share the entrepreneurial process, and how foreign connections and ideas can make it possible for small companies to become successful in Japan. He speaks at a very practical level about the good and the bad in building and running a company. Date: Thursday, March 10 Venue: Ritz Carlton Osaka, Terrace room 4F Access Map: http://bit.ly/dKd73I Time: 12:00PM ~ 14:00PM (reception opens at 11:30AM) Format: Buffet Luncheon Presentation Organized and Sponsored: Kansai Canada Business Association Co-sponsored: Osaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry KCBA/OCCI Member Price: 4,500yen Non-Member Price: 5,500yen *The price includes lunch. Please pay at the reception of this event. Closing date for attendee registration: March 7 * Cancellation after Closing Date is subject to 100% cancellation fee. For more info, contact Yamada at 06-6537-1792 by fax. ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CORRECTIONS/FEEDBACK In this section we run comments and corrections submitted by readers. We encourage you to spot our mistakes and amplify our points, by email, to editors at terrie.com. *** In TT603, we covered an item about a Japanese company selling video conferenced English lessons with teachers in the Philippines for just JPY100 for 20 minutes. That company is growing gangbusters. => Our reader comments: Regarding your quote: "Our guess is that retirees in the USA and elsewhere will wind up being the most popular online English teaching providers." Well, you should know that the minimum wage in California is $8.00 per HOUR while the minimum wage in Cebu, Philippines is $6.50 per DAY. Put another way, one can hire college-educated, bilingual staff for this $6.50 daily wage and as a result the Philippines surpassed India in 2010 to become the #1 call center nation in the world. A Japanese English-language student can speak with a young Filipina/Filipino about shared interests, including American music, J-Pop, K-Pop, etc. You guys may bet on American retirees being in demand for this work, but I'll bet on the Filipinos! I agree that the openness of some Filipinas may lead to sexually explicit discussion and probably makes them even more in demand. But the call centers here are mostly very professionally run, and any significant local call center is not going to allow their staff to do sexually explicit things on a call. => We respond: Thanks for the excellent feedback. Clearly trans-border language lessons are the wave of the future. Why did we mention American retirees? Although we didn't go into detail, they are more likely to have the relevant work experience and technical experience that company employees need to practice. We think that young Filipinos will be more attractive to casual and home learners. Also, there is no minimum wage if the parties participate in an open language-matching marketplace. This is already a proven fact for the translation business, with sites such as Proz.com. English teaching won't be far behind. *********************************************************** END SUBSCRIBERS: 8,757 members as of March 6th, 2010 (We purge our list regularly.) +++ ABOUT US STAFF Written by: Terrie Lloyd (terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com) HELP: E-mail Terrie-request at mailman.japaninc.com with the word 'help' in the subject or body (don't include the quotes), and you will get back a message with instructions. FEEDBACK Send letters (Feedback, Inquiries & Information) to the editor to terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com. ADVERTISING INFORMATION For more information on advertising in this newsletter, Contact ads at japaninc.com. SUBSCRIBE Get Terrie's Take by giving your name and email address at http://www.japaninc.com/newsletters/free_sign_up, or go straight to Mailman at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ Copyright 2011 Japan Inc. Communications Inc. ----------------- Japan Inc opens up Japan ---------------- J at pan Inc is Japan's only independently published English- language business website. Authoritatively chronicling online the business trends in Japan, each posting brings you in-depth analysis of business, people and technology in the world's second largest economy. Visit www.japaninc.com for the best business insight on Japan available. ----------------------------------------------------------- -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From terrie at mailman.japaninc.com Fri Mar 11 19:00:46 2011 From: terrie at mailman.japaninc.com (Terrie's Take) Date: Fri, 11 Mar 2011 19:00:46 +0900 Subject: Tokyo and today's quake Message-ID: To our readers: Our sincere thanks to those many people who have emailed to let us here in Japan know that they are concerned about the Magnitude 8.8 earthquake here earlier this afternoon. Thankfully Tokyo was spared the worst and apart from a fuel depot fire, some fallen masonry, some flooding, and limited injuries, the worst that happened was shaking and rolling as the quake hit. Certainly very scary and a big wake up call about how Tokyo has not yet had the "big one" that is predicted sometime in the near future. Our thoughts and wishes go out to the people caught up in the devastation following the tsunami to hit Sendai about 300km further to the North. Best regards, Editors at Terrie's Take. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From terrie at mailman.japaninc.com Sun Mar 13 15:23:56 2011 From: terrie at mailman.japaninc.com (Terrie's Take) Date: Sun, 13 Mar 2011 15:23:56 +0900 Subject: Terrie's Take 605 -- A Long Walk Home on Friday, e-biz news from Japan Message-ID: * * * * * * * * * T E R R I E 'S T A K E * * * * * * * A weekly roundup of news & information from Terrie Lloyd. (http://www.terrie.com) General Edition Sunday, March 13, 2011, Issue No. 605 +++ INDEX - What's New -- The Long Walk Home on Friday - News -- Power cuts for Tokyo on Monday March 13th? - Candidate Roundup/Vacancies - Upcoming Events - Corrections/Feedback - News Credits SUBSCRIBE to, UNSUBSCRIBE from Terrie's Take at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take, or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ ---------- UPGRADE TODAY TO PBXL IP TELEPHONY ---------- PBXL has the solution for your office. PBXL will purchase and dispose of your outdated, unsupported phone system and provide you with state of the art Cisco VoIP telephony. PBXL provides the features and flexibility your business needs to compete including computer telephony, iPhone integration, proactive monitoring, and bundled support and maintenance. For additional information call us anytime at 03-4550-1600, e-mail us at info at pbxl.jp or visit http://en.pbxl.co.jp/ ----------- PBXL is BUSINESS COMMUNICATIONS ------------ +++ WHAT'S NEW We were on a train at Takadanobaba on the JR Yamanote loop line when the Sendai earthquake struck on Friday. At first we thought the shaking was turbulence from a passing train, but when it kept growing in intensity it became obvious that it was an earthquake. We quickly got off the train and standing on the platform watched a surreal scene start to unfold in the main street leading to the station. Buildings swayed, some remarkably so, windows flexed in and out making you wonder why they didn't burst, and office workers were pouring out of their buildings to the street, confused and concerned. Luckily Tokyo was largely spared quake damage, and despite the heavy motion, we didn't see any buildings break. Further east in Chiba and south in Yokohama, there were isolated instances of falling masonry, collapsing walls, and an exploded LNG fuel depot. The quake went on for several minutes, a rolling and shaking motion that made you think that some poor bas***ds somewhere else must be getting it much worse. Here in Tokyo we all think the next big one is going to come from Shizuoka, roaring north up Tokyo Bay and into the metropolis. But as we found out later, the epicenter was in Sendai, 350km to the north. What a difference a mere 350km makes... and thank god for that. After the quake, the station master announced that the JR lines were stopped indefinitely, along with all Tokyo's subway lines. Takadanobaba is some distance from Roppongi where the office is, and we started wondering how we would get back. Down in front of the station, people were standing around, many not allowed into their buildings until the aftershocks moderated, and others like us haphazardly stuck somewhere in transit. This traffic chaos is the real challenge of living in a big city like Tokyo. We, like 12m or so others, depend on the trains to get us efficiently from one place to the other. When things run smoothly commuting can be wonderful -- with journeys across town guaranteed to take no more than 20-45 minutes, and fares costing just JPY120-JPY350. 102 subway and overground train lines crisscross Tokyo and make for the world's most efficient people-moving system. [Continued below...] -------- Bilingual Social Media Software Solutions -------- Social media and mobile applications development in both English and Japanese now available from MetroWorks Ltd., here in Tokyo. We developed the major applications being used by the Metropolis magazine, and are producing solutions for foreign firms seeking to develop audiences in Japan. SNS, ranking engines, eCommerce, email marketing tracking, and of course website front ends for the iPhone and other mobile platforms. 650 engineers in Vietnam for larger off-shored projects. For enquiries, contact: sales at metroworks.jp ------------------------------------------------------------ [...Article continues] But when the system is shut down for hours as it was with this earthquake, the convenience we take for granted is transformed into the hard reality of how to get back to the office or get home. Such was the case on Friday afternoon and evening, when many city workers had to make the decision of whether to queue for 3-4 hours for one of the few packed buses, stay at the office or in a warm train station entrance (it was 2-3 degrees on Friday evening) for the night, or walk home. Anyone within a 10-15 kilometer radius of downtown chose to walk. Some took cars (sharing rides or renting a car) but soon regretted it as roads across town were gridlocked for hours. Actually we covered this exact traffic scenario in the Japan Inc. magazine back in 2008. See here for details: http://www.japaninc.com/node/3096 What a remarkable scene Friday night was. Heading out to the suburbs at ten pm, we saw crowds of people on the sidewalks, as if they were out for some Sunday shopping. Office colleagues chatting as the strode; people crowded around designated smoking spaces and taking a nicotine charge; young women waiting up in street cafes that were open late; crowds lining up at convenience stores getting food and drink for the 3-4 hour power walk ahead. The atmosphere on the streets was congenial and relaxed. It was Friday night, after all, and everyone was in it together. On the way back, an old man called out, "Hey, which way to Shinjuku?" On the train system you don't need to know which direction is North, and he was trying to orientate himself in the darkness and tall buildings. We walked with him a ways, chatting about how terrible it was in Sendai and did he have any family up there. We got the impression that it was the first time he'd been thrown in to chat with foreigners. We bid him goodbye and hoped he'd get to Ikebukuro, his final destination and surely another 2-3 hours walk. Further along the road, an old couple passed with Dad pedaling and the wife perched on the back carrier, just like a couple of school kids. They were chatting animatedly and obviously she'd ridden from their distant home to pick up Dad who was stranded in Shibuya and take him home. Elsewhere, we saw salarymen on rickety old fashioned bicycles that had obviously been borrowed from the company and which are usually used to take mail down to the post office by the juniors. Elsewhere, newspapers reported this morning that hundreds simply bought a bike at the local Don Quijote or supermarket and rode it home. Passing a train station, there was not a single train in sight and the platforms were eerily deserted. It looked for all intents and purposes like a film set. But then we hurried along as the surrounding buildings suddenly started swaying again, from one of the hundreds of aftershocks that we are experiencing, even now on Sunday, two days later. We decided to visit the local supermarket to get some veges because it is likely that food will be in short supply over the next few days due to transport congestion and the need to send supplies further north. Fresh bread was completely sold out, as were milk, eggs, and other essentials. A friend of ours over in Chiba, which was harder hit, told us that yesterday Ito Yokado was sold out of all fresh food and basics. Then this morning we went to another local supermarket and all fresh meat, fish, bread, tofu, and other consumables are sold out, with more deliveries unlikely before tomorrow or Tuesday. I seems that people maybe fearing another quake might hit closer to Tokyo. Actually, speaking of Chiba, although the quake itself wasn't so bad, those people living on reclaimed land out there, such as Disneyland and surrounding areas, are still without water 48 hours after the quake. This is because while the buildings themselves are well made and foundations extend deep into the earth, the basic infrastructure of gas and water is just a bunch of pipes stuck into the ground. They had some severe liquifaction in the area on Friday and we saw a photo of a manhole pipe that was squeezed 2 meters up out of the ground just as if someone had squished the seeds out of a lemon. Here in the west side of Tokyo all services are working, but we're being told of upcoming water and power cuts as the authorities struggle to rebalance the utilities infrastructure to cover the loss of 7 nuclear power stations from Fukushima northwards. We imagine that we may have to deal with many such inconveniences over the coming days as our contribution to the recovery from what has been Japan's worst earthquake since records started. Life goes on, and the earthquake is having all kinds of side effects you would never think about. However, mostly we are all just thankful that Tokyo was spared, and we watch the TV reports with great sorrow at the devastation experienced in Sendai. Speculation is that the death toll may rise as high as 10,000 people. For those of you wanting to donate or make contact with loved ones here in Japan, this link gives some services that may be of assistance: http://metropolis.co.jp/ ...The information janitors/ ***------------------------****-------------------------*** --------- BIOS - Bilingual IT Systems and Support --------- BiOS full-service IT solutions has a new service. Working with our fully licenced temporary dispatch group, we are now able to provide Japan in-country workers for companies not yet registered in Japan. This innovative service is available for companies needing to hire staff for Japanese customers, but who are unable to commit to the expense and infrastructure of maintaining an office in Japan. We take care of all aspects of the employment, contracting, and dispatch -- including management of the employee. Also, if you're thinking of Cloud office solutions, take a look at Microsoft's new Business Productivity Online Standard Suite. Terrie mentions Exchange Online in TT602, and we can do the implementations for you. For more information on this and other SI and IT services, in English or Japanese: Phone: (03) 4588-2220, Email: solutions at biosjp.com Web: www.biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ NEWS - Power cuts possible from Monday March 13th - Keidanren urges quick increase in consumption tax - More Chinese condo buyers - Tomy to buy RC2 of USA - Bain to buy out Skylark -> Power cuts possible from Monday March 13th After Friday's devastating earthquake and now with two and possibly three reactors in serious trouble and risk of meltdown, the Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) has warned that it may have to institute power cuts from tomorrow (Monday, March 13th). Apparently the nation has lost about 5%-6% of its overall power generation capacity, around 20% of the nuclear power capacity. In all, ten reactors have been taken off the grid, 7 by TEPCO and 3 by other operators. ***Ed: How good is your power back up system for your servers? This is another good reason to put your applications up in the cloud.** (Source: TT commentary from nikkei.com, Mar 12, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110312D12JF553.htm -> Keidanren urges quick increase in consumption tax Just before the earthquake hit, the nation's leading business group, the Japan Business Federation, otherwise known as Keidanren, called for an urgent increase of the consumption tax from 5% to 10%. Their reasoning was quite simply to cover pensions and other social spending. HOWEVER, it is our guess that the government may seize the earthquake as an opportunity to boost the consumption tax earlier, so as to help the Sendai recovery effort. ***Ed: In addition, we'd say that Kan is doing a reasonable job of leadership in this crisis. His prospects of staying in power are looking a bit better than they did a week ago.** (Source: TT from nikkei.com, Mar 12, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110311D11JFN06.htm -> More Chinese condo buyers The Japan Times reports that more wealthy Chinese people are buying condos in Japan, particularly in Tokyo and other major cities at which their kids may be attending school. The report says that Daikyo has sold about 50 Lion's Mansion apartments to Chinese and Taiwanese buyers since July 2010. The company reckons it will hit 300 contracts annually within the next couple of years. Especially popular are condos in Bunkyo-ku, close to Tokyo University. ***Ed: Not just Daikyo. We were over seeing a client in the Sumitomo Fudosan Mita Building, where Sumitomo has a high-end realty operation, and we came across a Chinese tour group of 15 or so people there specifically to look at condo's. We expect a lot more of this type of activity, given that the Chinese don't actually get to own their own land in China, it belongs to the government. Here, they can buy and hold on to it for generations if they want.** (Source: TT commentary from japantimes.co.jp, Mar 12, 2011) http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nn20110312f1.html -> Tomy to buy RC2 of USA M&A by cash flush Japanese companies continues apace, with toymaker Tomy saying that it will buy out rival RC2 Corporation of the USA for US$640m. Apparently Tomy is paying a premium of 27% on RC2's most recent stock price. The transaction is expected to take place in the next quarter. **Ed: Less kids being born in Japan, this deal certainly makes a lot of sense.** (Source: TT commentary from businessweek.com, Mar 10, 2011) http://www.businessweek.com/ap/financialnews/D9LSOLB80.htm -> Bain to buy out Skylark Another notable buyout is that of the Skylark restaurant chain by Bain Capital from Nomura Holdings. Bain will reportedly pay around JPY300bn in cash and debt to buy the business. Skylark is a major chain in Japan, with 3,700 outlets around the country. It had sales of JPY242bn last year and net profits of JPY7.9bn. (Source: TT commentary from bloomberg.com, Mar 11, 2011) http://bloom.bg/e4c4Dq NOTE: Broken links Many online news sources remove their articles after just a few days of posting them, thus breaking our links -- we apologize for the inconvenience. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** -------- Essential Business Reference in English ---------- If you're a manager or director of a company in Japan, you need these references with detailed explanations in English!!! - Japan Staff Employment Law Guide - 1st Edition Published June, 2010 (JPY 21,000) - Japan Master Tax Guide 2010/11 Published July, 2010 (JPY 18,375) - Japan Corporation Law Guide - 2nd Edition Published November, 2010 (JPY 22,050) *Above prices include tax For more details: support at cch.co.jp, call 03-6234-3980. Web: https://www.cch-japan.jp/contents/register/form www.cch-japan.jp ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ CANDIDATE ROUND UP/VACANCIES => BiOS, a Division of the LINC Media group, is actively marketing the following positions for customers setting up or expanding in Japan, as well as other employers of bilinguals. ** HIGHLIGHTED POSITION We are currently looking for a Senior Network Engineer to work onsite at a global investment bank in Tokyo through one of the largest IT services company in Tokyo. Successful candidates should have experience in network system design in or with financial/banking companies, with strong knowledge and skill of market data system configuration. CCIE holder preferred. The candidate will work as a contract employee for up to 6 months as a form of probation, then will convert to a permanent employee. Remuneration is JPY10m - JPY15m depending on your experience and skill level. ** POSITIONS VACANT - Junior PM/Team Leader (infra), Pharma, JPY5m ? JPY6.5m - Sales Mgr (Measurement Equip), Maker, JPY2m ? JPY2.5m - Procurement Officer x2, iBank JPY4.0m ? JPY5.0m - Multimedia Engineer, global IT co., JPY8m ? JPY10m - Senior Linux Engineer, global IT co., JPY8m ? JPY10m Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: kenji.sakota at biosjp.com ** BiOS Job Mail Every 2 weeks BiOS sends out a regular communication to its job seeking candidates, called BiOS Job Mail. Every edition carries a list of BiOS's current and most up-to-date vacancies, with each entry featuring a short job description and a direct link to the main entry on the BiOS home page. Regardless of whether you are unemployed and searching, thinking about a career change, or just curious to know if there is something out there that might suit you better, the BiOS Job Mail newsletter is an easy and convenient way for you to stay informed. If you would like to register for the BiOS Job Mail, or to find out more, please email kenji.sakota at biosjp.com. Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: kenji.sakota at biosjp.com. ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ UPCOMING EVENTS/ANNOUNCEMENTS ------------- Entrepreneur Seminar in Tokyo --------------- Start a Company in Japan Entrepreneur's Handbook Seminar 23rd of April, 2011 If you have been considering setting up your own company, find out what it takes to make it successful. Terrie Lloyd, founder of over 13 start-up companies in Japan, will be giving an English-language seminar and Q and A on starting up a company in Japan. Over 450 people have taken this course so far. This is an ideal opportunity to find out what is involved, and to ask specific questions that are not normally answered in business books. All materials are in English and are Japan-focused. For more details: http://www.japaninc.com/entrepreneur_handbook_seminar ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CORRECTIONS/FEEDBACK In this section we run comments and corrections submitted by readers. We encourage you to spot our mistakes and amplify our points, by email, to editors at terrie.com. *** In TT602, we said that we had moved office and one thing that made the move much easier was the fact that we have put many of our software applications up in the cloud and virtualized the servers they run on. This has both reduced costs tremendously, and in the event of the recent earthquake, makes us able to support our business even if the office is shut down, so long as employees can work from their homes. => Our reader comments: - Hosted Exchange is a great solution, but did you consider IMAP for enabling Gmail offline? Google has offered IMAP since pretty much day one meaning you can get Gmail offline in Outlook, in most other email software, and on smartphones. For reference I used to used a hosted Exchange solution for my private email around 5 years ago before switching to GMail. I now use GMail completely in the cloud and couldn't be happier. - If you are ever considering a hardware upgrade I'd be interested to have you throw Apple hardware into the comparison. I think there are still reasons why companies would not or should not want to make such a switch, but it's still interesting to see the comparisons by companies as experienced as LINC Media. One of the key factors in Mac OS favor is that it offers Microsoft Exchange support out of the box. *********************************************************** END SUBSCRIBERS: 8,757 members as of March 13th, 2010 (We purge our list regularly.) +++ ABOUT US STAFF Written by: Terrie Lloyd (terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com) HELP: E-mail Terrie-request at mailman.japaninc.com with the word 'help' in the subject or body (don't include the quotes), and you will get back a message with instructions. FEEDBACK Send letters (Feedback, Inquiries & Information) to the editor to terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com. ADVERTISING INFORMATION For more information on advertising in this newsletter, Contact ads at japaninc.com. SUBSCRIBE Get Terrie's Take by giving your name and email address at http://www.japaninc.com/newsletters/free_sign_up, or go straight to Mailman at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ Copyright 2011 Japan Inc. Communications Inc. ----------------- Japan Inc opens up Japan ---------------- J at pan Inc is Japan's only independently published English- language business website. Authoritatively chronicling online the business trends in Japan, each posting brings you in-depth analysis of business, people and technology in the world's second largest economy. Visit www.japaninc.com for the best business insight on Japan available. ----------------------------------------------------------- -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From terrie at mailman.japaninc.com Sun Mar 20 23:30:38 2011 From: terrie at mailman.japaninc.com (Terrie's Take) Date: Sun, 20 Mar 2011 23:30:38 +0900 Subject: Terrie's Take 606 -- Nuclear Near Miss, e-biz news from Japan Message-ID: * * * * * * * * * T E R R I E 'S T A K E * * * * * * * A weekly roundup of news & information from Terrie Lloyd. (http://www.terrie.com) General Edition Sunday, March 20, 2011, Issue No. 606 +++ INDEX - What's New -- Nuclear Near Miss - News -- Radioactive contamination of food supplies - Candidate Roundup/Vacancies - Upcoming Events -- April Entrepreneur Seminar - Corrections/Feedback -- Aggregating small farms - News Credits SUBSCRIBE to, UNSUBSCRIBE from Terrie's Take at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take, or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ ---------------- An Open Letter from PBXL ----------------- We hope that you, your family, friends and colleagues are safe from the tragic earthquake that struck last Friday. For our part, we are pleased to report that the PBXL team suffered no injuries, and has largely resumed normal operations. I am also happy to report that our telecommunications and data infrastructure survived last week?s earthquake with minimal impact to customer services. As long time members of the community, we believe that friends, neighbors and relatives help each other out in times of need, and encourage you to donate to the relief efforts for the areas hit by the Tsunami. http://www.accj.or.jp/doclib/pr/ACCJ_Relief_Fund_E.pdf This fund will have no charitable overhead attached to it, so every yen you donate will go directly to a needy family. http://en.pbxl.jp ----------- PBXL is BUSINESS COMMUNICATIONS ------------ +++ WHAT'S NEW Well, what a week it has been. Most everyone we know has had their eyes glued to the Internet news services during the day and the TV news in the evening, wanting to know about one thing: radiation and whether it's coming to Tokyo. We've been served information on a 24x7 basis on everything you ever wanted to know about nuclear reactors and meltdowns. Now we know: * What types of radiation to be worried about (Iodine-131 and Cesium-137 isotopes in this instance) * How much will kill you outright (4-6 Sieverts per hour) * How it affects people and the environment long-term (here in Tokyo it's the airborne particulates we have to worry about not the radiation occurring in Fukushima itself) * How much is being measured around the crippled Fukushima Dai-ichi power plant (see below) * How the weather, as capricious as it is, will either blow a cloud of radiation down over the 35m people living in Tokyo -- or won't... But the fact is that as of today, Sunday, the radiation levels in Tokyo are still low, well within safe amounts, and have been all week. So what we're living with here in the big city is not radiation fall out, but the tangible, gut-gnawing fear of it. And what fear it has caused... Over the last 5 days in particular, as we all started realizing it was the nuclear power plant, not the Tohoku/Kanto earthquake which would most threaten Tokyo, the fear levels of people living here have risen dramatically. At the beginning the focus was on the lack of information about the plant status, other than it was dire, and whether we could trust the government and TEPCO to give us the truth. So here at our sister company Metropolis, one of the technical staff, Steve Danieletto, brought in his Geiger counter and started doing daily readings. You can find the readings here, and what you'll find is that very little radiation has made its way to Tokyo. http://metropolis.co.jp/quake/quake-2011-03/tokyo-atmospheric-radiation-levels/ You can see Steve take the readings here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0rp2nqBt04A&feature=player_embedded The following is an excellent map and links to Japanese radiation monitoring stations all over Honshu: http://bit.ly/gyZulQ [Continued below...] -------- Bilingual Social Media Software Solutions -------- Social media and mobile applications development in both English and Japanese now available from MetroWorks Ltd., here in Tokyo. We developed the major applications being used by the Metropolis magazine, and are producing solutions for foreign firms seeking to develop audiences in Japan. SNS, ranking engines, eCommerce, email marketing tracking, and of course website front ends for the iPhone and other mobile platforms. 650 engineers in Vietnam for larger off-shored projects. For inquiries, contact: sales at metroworks.jp ------------------------------------------------------------ [...Article continues] So having established that the government is giving reasonably reliable information, the focus shifted to the competence and ability of TEPCO and authorities to get the reactors under control again. Here's where the real problem started, because they (TEPCO et al) haven't been able to tell us exactly what is going on -- partly because of the intense radiation at the actual site, they can't get close enough to the reactors and so appear to be doing remote guesswork. Fear is not about actuals, as any good horror movie director will tell you, it's about possibilities. And the foreign media have been doing their best to feed that fear, since this is what sells. Reading some of the reports abroad, Japan is already radioactive and Tokyo is doomed. One locally-based expat got fed up with this, and produced a media-tracking page called "Journalist Wall of Shame". You can see it at: http://jpquake.wikispaces.com/Journalist+Wall+of+Shame. Yes, the situation in Fukushima is volatile, and yes, the reactors could still yet blow up. But Japan has its best and bravest up at the power station site, working on dousing the fuel rods and restoring infrastructure so that they can bring things under control, and so far they appear to be making progress. If you're wondering how much radiation we're talking about, here's something to put things into perspective: * One banana: 0.0001 millisieverts (mSv) * Mammogram: 5 mSv * CAT Scan: 6 to 18 mSv * Radiation Sickness: starts at around 500 mSv Actual readings from this incident: * Reading March 15th at Fukushima Dai-ichi, right at No. 2 reactor: 800 mSv/hour (Worst) * Reading March 16th at Fukushima Dai-ichi plant front gate: 10 mSv/hour * Reading March 19th at Fukushima Dai-ichi, right at No. 2 reactor: 20 mSv/hour (Much reduced) * Reading March 20th at Fukushima Dai-ichi: around 700 microsieverts/hour (700 uSv) and falling * Reading March 19th in Tokyo: around 0.17 uSv/hour and stable (normal) Here's what a UK expert posted on the UK embassy website says about a worst case scenario. In short he says the impact on Tokyo will be limited: http://ukinjapan.fco.gov.uk/en/news/?view=News&id=566914282 Back to the fear factor. Most Japanese living in Tokyo are sticking close to home and the TV. They have been stocking up on food -- causing Tokyo's stores to be bare of bread, milk, eggs, natto, and a bunch of other things. Those going to work would by our guess be just 30%-50% of normal numbers, based on the paucity of people on the trains and traffic in the streets. We imagine that those who could will have already taken the opportunity to head back to their home towns. (See the news below about full hotels in Osaka.) Thursday and Friday were particularly fearful days for foreigners in Tokyo when the U.S. embassy decided on Thursday that after all, U.S. citizens who wanted to leave on a voluntary basis would be assisted to airlift out of Tokyo. The next day, the same offer was extended to families of armed forces. Until that time, many foreigners here rationalized that if the U.S. government was staying put (and they have as much wherewithal as the Japanese to monitor the situation), then things must be OK. But for them to ratchet up the alert levels and start to ship people out was definitely unnerving for many. Yet, as the embassy itself said, the evacuation is voluntary and the embassy remains open for business this weekend to process documentation for departing Americans and their immediate families. So they're staying put. The effect of these fear levels is really hurting life and commerce here in Tokyo. There have been various estimates on what the cost of the earthquake will be, between JPY100trn and JPY200trn -- which could be as much as 3% of GDP. But these estimates probably don't take into account the fact that the Fukushima reactor crisis could last for weeks, not to mention the associated power cuts due to losing 20% of the nation's electricity supply for possibly 3 months (until fossil fuel power stations come back on line). As the situation drags on, large companies in the nation's largest city will be unable to work normal hours, small companies will go under due to customers staying home, and we think the economic impact will be much higher. Here at our own group companies we have had a taste of the impact on business. Internally, about 30% of our staff, both foreigners and Japanese, have decided to get out of Tokyo -- day-by-day a few more make the tough decision. We can't blame people for leaving, especially those with families abroad who are pressuring them to get out while there is still time. We have been told of crying mothers and relatives on the phone from abroad, who after reading the foreign press reports are fretting and begging their sons and daughters to just "come home". It's hard to resist that kind of pressure. Japanese staff also, with friends and family outside Tokyo are being urged to leave. Normally a 30% drop in staff would be disastrous for us, but the fact is that many of our clients have also either substantially reduced their operations or in the case of some companies, have simply sent out email saying that they will be closed indefinitely. As a result, demand for services and the need to keep scheduled meetings has dropped noticeably. Usually after something bad happens, we try to find a silver lining, so that the event can be written down to experience. But for this nuclear near-miss, the only good thing we can think of is if the authorities either decide to close down all the old nukes in Japan and impose a much stricter building code on those remaining, OR, better still, make a wholesale move to green energy and make it a national imperative. Either way, we never again want to experience the fear of a nuclear reactor melting down just 200km away, and not knowing whether to run or stay. ******************************* For those of you wanting to donate or make contact with loved ones here in Japan, go to the following website for a list of links: http://metropolis.co.jp/ ...The information janitors/ ***------------------------****-------------------------*** --------- BIOS - Bilingual IT Systems and Support --------- BiOS full-service IT solutions has a new service. Working with our fully licenced temporary dispatch group, we are now able to provide Japan in-country workers for companies not yet registered in Japan. This innovative service is available for companies needing to hire staff for Japanese customers, but who are unable to commit to the expense and infrastructure of maintaining an office in Japan. We take care of all aspects of the employment, contracting, and dispatch -- including management of the employee. Also, if you're thinking of Cloud office solutions, take a look at Microsoft's new Business Productivity Online Standard Suite. Terrie mentions Exchange Online in TT602, and we can do the implementations for you. For more information on this and other SI and IT services, in English or Japanese: Phone: (03) 4588-2220, Email: solutions at biosjp.com Web: www.biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ NEWS - JPY10trn in loans for stressed companies - Mizuho has major ATM disruption - Ichiro Suzuki donates JPY100m to earthquake victims - Osaka hotels fully booked with refugees - Fukushima food contamination fears => JPY10trn in loans for stressed companies Taking a very pragmatic approach which won't help thousands of smaller companies, the government is expected to make a special disaster relief fund of up to JPY10trn available for medium-size and large businesses that have been impacted by the Tohoku-Kanto earthquake of last week. The loans will be delivered primarily by the Development Bank of Japan (DBJ) and Shoko Chukin Bank, and are expected to come without a cap. Where will the money come from? Probably from postal savings and government pension funds. (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Mar 19, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110318D18JFF01.htm => Mizuho has major ATM disruption You have to wonder about the timing of their troubles, when Mizuho Bank announced on Tuesday that their ATMs were not working -- did one of their key programmers flee Tokyo along with many others? We may never know, but the result is that by Friday, Mizuho had to reveal that they have 910,000 unprocessed transactions in their system, including welfare and salary checks. The bank has made a temporary credit facility of up to JPY100,000 available to customers to see them through until the system problem is fixed this long weekend (their target anyway). (Source: TT commentary from nikkei.com, Mar 18, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110318D18JF362.htm => Ichiro Suzuki donates JPY100m to earthquake victims Everyone's favorite Japanese baseball player in the US big leagues, Ichiro Suzuki, has announced that he will donate US$1.23m to the Japanese Red Cross to help victims of the Tohoku-Kanto earthquake. Ichiro's generosity has apparently spurred on efforts by the Seattle Mariners as a team to raise more cash for the relief effort. The club has said it will match dollar for dollar up to a minimum US$100,000 any donations made by fans for the clean up to come. (Source: TT commentary from bleacherreport.com, Mar 18, 2011) http://bit.ly/dVg2IW => Osaka hotels fully booked with refugees Aftershocks and radiation fears by families in Tokyo are leading to an exodus to Osaka and a corresponding spike in hotel occupancy there. Hotels at all price ranges are apparently full. At the top end, the JPY70,000/room St. Regis Osaka was fully booked this week, largely by families with kids. Not just individual families, companies are also making arrangements to create a backup operation in Osaka. Apparently ERP software company SAP has reserved 520 rooms in both Osaka and Kobe for employees and their families. (Source: TT commentary from japantimes.co.jp, Mar 19, 2011) http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nb20110319n1.html => Fukushima food contamination fears The UN-run International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has announced that the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare has ordered a halt to the sales of food harvested in Fukushima prefecture and certain types of vegetables such as spinach, from the neighboring prefecture of Ibaraki. Apparently radioactive iodine is contaminating milk and vegetables grown in Fukushima and was detected during shipment scans on Wednesday and Thursday. So far only iodine has been detected. (Source: TT commentary from reuters.com, Mar 19, 2011) http://reut.rs/hLLy8x NOTE: Broken links Many online news sources remove their articles after just a few days of posting them, thus breaking our links -- we apologize for the inconvenience. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** -------- Essential Business Reference in English ---------- If you're a manager or director of a company in Japan, you need these references with detailed explanations in English!!! - Japan Staff Employment Law Guide - 1st Edition Published June, 2010 (JPY 21,000) - Japan Master Tax Guide 2010/11 Published July, 2010 (JPY 18,375) - Japan Corporation Law Guide - 2nd Edition Published November, 2010 (JPY 22,050) *Above prices include tax For more details: support at cch.co.jp, call 03-6234-3980. Web: https://www.cch-japan.jp/contents/register/form www.cch-japan.jp ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ CANDIDATE ROUND UP/VACANCIES => BiOS, a Division of the LINC Media group, is actively marketing the following positions for customers setting up or expanding in Japan, as well as other employers of bilinguals. ** HIGHLIGHTED POSITION We are currently looking for a Senior Network Engineer to work onsite at a global investment bank in Tokyo through one of the largest IT services company in Tokyo. Successful candidates should have experience in network system design in or with financial/banking companies, with strong knowledge and skill of market data system configuration. CCIE holder preferred. The candidate will work as a contract employee for up to 6 months as a form of probation, then will convert to a permanent employee. Remuneration is JPY10m - JPY15m depending on your experience and skill level. ** POSITIONS VACANT - Junior PM/Team Leader (infra), Pharma, JPY5m ? JPY6.5m - Sales Mgr (Measurement Equip), Maker, JPY2m ? JPY2.5m - Procurement Officer x2, iBank JPY4.0m ? JPY5.0m - Multimedia Engineer, global IT co., JPY8m ? JPY10m - Senior Linux Engineer, global IT co., JPY8m ? JPY10m Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: kenji.sakota at biosjp.com ** BiOS Job Mail Every 2 weeks BiOS sends out a regular communication to its job seeking candidates, called BiOS Job Mail. Every edition carries a list of BiOS's current and most up-to-date vacancies, with each entry featuring a short job description and a direct link to the main entry on the BiOS home page. Regardless of whether you are unemployed and searching, thinking about a career change, or just curious to know if there is something out there that might suit you better, the BiOS Job Mail newsletter is an easy and convenient way for you to stay informed. If you would like to register for the BiOS Job Mail, or to find out more, please email kenji.sakota at biosjp.com. Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: kenji.sakota at biosjp.com. ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ UPCOMING EVENTS/ANNOUNCEMENTS ------------- Entrepreneur Seminar in Tokyo --------------- Start a Company in Japan Entrepreneur's Handbook Seminar 23rd of April, 2011 If you have been considering setting up your own company, find out what it takes to make it successful. Terrie Lloyd, founder of over 13 start-up companies in Japan, will be giving an English-language seminar and Q and A on starting up a company in Japan. Over 450 people have taken this course so far. This is an ideal opportunity to find out what is involved, and to ask specific questions that are not normally answered in business books. All materials are in English and are Japan-focused. For more details: http://www.japaninc.com/entrepreneur_handbook_seminar ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CORRECTIONS/FEEDBACK In this section we run comments and corrections submitted by readers. We encourage you to spot our mistakes and amplify our points, by email, to editors at terrie.com. *** In TT604, we discussed the Farm Ministry's efforts to throw up a smoke screen to stall the government signing the TPP trade pact with other Asia-Pacific nations later this year. => Our reader comments: - Although Japan has, beyond any doubt, totally mismanaged its overall agricultural sector horribly, it still might be premature to dismiss the idea of promoting larger farm sizes out of hand. The average farm size in the U.S. is 418 acres, or 169 ha (a watermelon). http://www.ers.usda.gov/StateFacts/US.htm#FC The average farm size in the EU-15 is 19 ha (an orange). http://www.rlg.nl/cap/austria.html The average farm size in Japan is 1.27 ha (a raisin). What Japan is finally coming to grips with the fact that they don't have farms, they have "micro-farms." There is nothing wrong with micro-farms as part of a larger agricultural eco-system. Some of them can be real winners and they are perfect for some people, such as a rural couple in their 90's. But it's very hard to see how you can have any kind of competitive overall agricultural economy with ONLY micro-farms. Because (although it is far from perfect) the EU model seems to be relatively vibrant and sustainable, promoting more EU-size farms in Japan would seem to make sense. For obvious geographical reasons, striving for US-sized farms isn't realistic. It would be neither simple nor quick (nor immune to abuse or bureaucratic incompetence), but turning many of Japan's tiny farms into larger ones is actually not only rather plausible, but it may present a last, best chance for Japan to reverse 60 years of mismanagement. The key would be NOT to "collectivize" or to "consolidate," but rather to perform thousands (or tens of thousands) of "land swaps." This is actually quite common in the U.S; for example, when for whatever reason the federal (or state, or a local) government finds itself with two pieces of property to manage with a piece of private land separating them. Because it is many times more easy to manage one piece than two, for any number of purposes such as fire mitigation, water management, public access, wood harvesting, etc., private owners and government(s) go over the issues and a map, and simply swap titles: giving the government the land it needs and giving the private owner one of the two pieces the government doesn't need. The parcels can be located anywhere: all you need is willing owners with legitimate titles who agree to exchange. Where the value of the two parcels is massively different, the difference is made up for with cash or some other form of compensation. And the real beauty of the system is that the ability to rationalize land use is almost infinite because, while more complicated, you can do this with multiple owners. For example, a trail on a mountain in Colorado (the mountain was in a National Forest) went over some private property (for reasons having to do with homesteading back in the 1870's). The individual didn't like hikers walking over his land every day and asked the Forest Service to move the trail. There was no good place to move the trail and the Forest Service didn't have any money to buy off the individual. The idea of a land swap came up. The U.S. Forest Service didn't have any land to offer the individual that was any good (flat, with close access to the electrical grid and a decent road)... but Rocky Mountain National Park did -- a few miles away. The individual got a few acres of beautiful land smack against RMNP, the Forest Service took total control of the trail, and in exchange RMNP got compensated for the exact same amount of land it lost by moving the line on a map in an area where the National Park and the Forest Service shared a boundary. Everyone was happy. Not a penny changed hands. (Yes, bureaucrats are usually stupid, but there are exceptions.) A micro-farm may make sense for some products or some farmers, but basically Japan got where it is by default (elderly couples) rather than by design. A more sustainable model is a family farm that can produce enough income to support an entire family without the need for another job -- in other words, a career (with enough income to support an attractive lifestyle) good enough to lure younger people into farming. Almost by definition, this will require farms with a kind of economic "critical mass" larger than 1 ha, so I for one think the idea should at least be tried out on a trial basis. The deal-breaker, I fear, will be the requirement that government(s) get VERY flexible about redesignating farmland as non-farmland and vice-versa to make it all work. But if you don't swing, you don't hit, and I wish Japan the best. -- A reader who grew up on family farms in the U.S. midwest. *********************************************************** END SUBSCRIBERS: 8,790 members as of March 20th, 2011 (We purge our list regularly.) +++ ABOUT US STAFF Written by: Terrie Lloyd (terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com) HELP: E-mail Terrie-request at mailman.japaninc.com with the word 'help' in the subject or body (don't include the quotes), and you will get back a message with instructions. FEEDBACK Send letters (Feedback, Inquiries & Information) to the editor to terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com. ADVERTISING INFORMATION For more information on advertising in this newsletter, Contact ads at japaninc.com. SUBSCRIBE Get Terrie's Take by giving your name and email address at http://www.japaninc.com/newsletters/free_sign_up, or go straight to Mailman at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ Copyright 2011 Japan Inc. Communications Inc. ----------------- Japan Inc opens up Japan ---------------- J at pan Inc is Japan's only independently published English- language business website. Authoritatively chronicling online the business trends in Japan, each posting brings you in-depth analysis of business, people and technology in the world's second largest economy. Visit www.japaninc.com for the best business insight on Japan available. ----------------------------------------------------------- -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From terrie at mailman.japaninc.com Mon Mar 28 00:25:37 2011 From: terrie at mailman.japaninc.com (Terrie's Take) Date: Mon, 28 Mar 2011 00:25:37 +0900 Subject: Terrie's Take 607 -- Economic Fall-out from Fukushima, e-biz news from Japan Message-ID: * * * * * * * * * T E R R I E 'S T A K E * * * * * * * A weekly roundup of news & information from Terrie Lloyd. (http://www.terrie.com) General Edition Sunday, March 27, 2011, Issue No. 607 +++ INDEX - What's New -- Economic Fall-out from Fukushima - News -- Will Japan get Summer Time? - Candidate Roundup/Vacancies - Upcoming Events - Corrections/Feedback - News Credits SUBSCRIBE to, UNSUBSCRIBE from Terrie's Take at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take, or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ ---------- UPGRADE TODAY TO PBXL IP TELEPHONY ---------- PBXL has the solution for your office. PBXL will purchase and dispose of your outdated, unsupported phone system and provide you with state of the art Cisco VoIP telephony. PBXL provides the features and flexibility your business needs to compete including computer telephony, iPhone integration, proactive monitoring, and bundled support and maintenance. For additional information call us anytime at 03-4550-1600, e-mail us at info at pbxl.jp or visit http://en.pbxl.co.jp/ ----------- PBXL is BUSINESS COMMUNICATIONS ------------ +++ WHAT'S NEW Two weeks after the Tohoku-Kanto earthquake, life in Tokyo has entered a stage of uneasy calm. We all know that just 250km to the north, the Fukushima power plant is still spewing radiation locally, and in the last day or so officials have had to admit that the containment vessel in the Number 2 reactor is probably leaking radioactive material into the plant and eventually the ocean. When it rains as it did last week, or when the wind blows from the North, as it did today, the number of people going outside noticeably drops. Everyone is conscious of the risks. The fact is that the radiation levels are still low in Tokyo, but it doesn't help that the city's water supply was contaminated some days ago, then improved, then suddenly came up dangerous again in outlying areas of Chiba and Ibaraki. Just how uneasy Tokyo's 35m people feel can be gauged by the ongoing shortages in the supermarkets. Even though supplies were supposed to have re-started this last week, most stores are completely sold out of water, toilet paper, dairy products, and regular types of bread. Well, at least gasoline is available again. For reliable radiation readings on a daily basis out in Chiba, go here: http://www.jcac.or.jp/lib/senryo_lib/senryo_009.pdf In our part of town, in the shopping triangle represented by Shinjuku to Shibuya and then through to Roppongi/Akasaka there is still a lot less people shopping and eating out than there usually are. Again, the average person is in a state of nervous agitation and the last thing they are thinking of is relaxing with friends at a restaurant or buying new clothes. This state will eventually subside, but not until the nightly TV coverage of an almost out-of-control nuclear reactor ends. In Minato-ku, the heartland of foreign expats living in Tokyo, the streets are bare of foreign families. Conveniently it has been school break and many have left to spend time elsewhere. But it's not just the foreigners leaving, we are hearing many stories of Japanese family men sending their wife and kids elsewhere as well, while they continue working in Tokyo. This is all creating a feeling of foreboding by those of us in business, that tough times are ahead. Wanting to get a feel at ground level, over the last few days we've been visiting local restaurants and what we're hearing is that patronage is down 30% to 50%, with those establishments serving foreigners seeing almost no customers at all. It's a dire situation and unfortunate given that 2011 started out so promisingly. So just how bad will the financial situation will become? [Continued below...] -------- Bilingual Social Media Software Solutions -------- Social media and mobile applications development in both English and Japanese now available from MetroWorks Ltd., here in Tokyo. We developed the major applications being used by the Metropolis magazine, and are producing solutions for foreign firms seeking to develop audiences in Japan. SNS, ranking engines, eCommerce, email marketing tracking, and of course website front ends for the iPhone and other mobile platforms. 650 engineers in Vietnam for larger off-shored projects. For enquiries, contact: sales at metroworks.jp ------------------------------------------------------------ [...Article continues] The Japanese government said late this week that they expect to see a maximum of JPY25trn (US$300bn approx.) in damage caused by the earthquake and resulting tsunami. Offsetting this impact would be about JPY25trn of rebuilding to take place over the next three years. This of course assumes that people decide to go back to living where they were and that entire communities won't instead decide to uproot and move somewhere else -- something which appears to be happening amongst working-age people. The oldies will of course stay where they are. In addition, the government estimates the impact of interrupted factory output in autos, electricals, chemicals, and other high-volume industries as being around JPY250bn (US$3bn). While this number appears to be manageable, our guess is that it falls woefully short of the real impact that the quake and the nuclear crisis in particular are going to have on the country. If you take into account the food, entertainment, apparel, beauty, health/sports, and other discretionary-spending business sectors, and the rolling power cuts that will run in the Kanto (Tokyo and surrounds) for at least another 4-6 weeks, then the real cost of this earthquake may be much higher. What concerns us is that while the government has announced special loans for major and mid-sized companies, there doesn't seem to be much interest in the other 26% of the domestic GDP, being small companies and proprietor-run establishments. Our guess is that without some support to these firms, the number of bankruptcies here in Tokyo will soar later on this year and the unemployment rate will rise accordingly. In fact, in 2006, 87% of companies in Japan employed 20 people or less, so they may not account for much GDP, but they do account for a lot of workers. Let's look at two sectors that we feel the government has underestimated the impact of the nuclear crisis: travel and food exports. 1. Travel: Travel accounts for just over 2% of the nation's GDP, or around JPY10trn. Most of this is domestic travel, but foreign travelers bring fresh, unencumbered cash into the economy and so have extra value. This year, the government was going to try to push for 11m foreign tourists, but after the earthquake and the nuclear scare, the number of incoming travelers passing through Narita Immigration has instead plummeted by 60% from March 11 through 22nd. In contrast, the number of foreigners leaving surged from 20,000 over the same period a year ago to 190,000. No wonder the streets in Roppongi look deserted... Domestic travel is also heavily affected, again going back to the fact that no one feels like engaging in frivolous activities while a nuclear crisis is in full swing. As of last week, domestic travel reservations were down 33% at JTB and trips North were down 70% while those to Tokyo were down 60%. Of course bookings are up in the Kansai, as many head west to relative safety. 2. Food Exports: Japan's food exports are a small fraction of the GDP, at around JPY270bn (US$3.27bn) in 2009, and were expected to rise this year. The leading export is seafood, at US$1.47bn, but with the leaking of Iodine-131 into the ocean off the Fukushima power plant, the likelihood is that volumes will fall sharply for some months. Why are food exports important? Because with the anticipated signing by Japan of the TPP trade pact to open up the agricultural market here, food exports were supposed to provide farmers with a way of being able to cope with the flood of cheap imports that TPP will bring about. Unfortunately, now that many countries have started banning Japanese food imports, we imagine that the TPP itself will be postponed or thrown out as well. One other sector that looks like it will be hit by the nuclear crisis is high-end property in Tokyo. Basically those who can afford luxury apartments and high-end land are also those who are most able to pull up stakes and be somewhere else: be they expatriate families or wealthy Japanese retirees. A number of major property developers have seen their shares fall and we expect this trend to pick up steam if the Fukushima plant No. 2 reactor turns out to have been breached. Even if it hasn't, experts are saying that the nuclear crisis could last for months, causing the current uneasy batten-down-the-hatches atmosphere to become highly disruptive to normal business and consumption in a city which absorbs more than 25% of all goods and services in the country. As a result, we're wondering if the economic impact from the earthquake won't be much worse than the government is predicting, and whether there won't be a mini "melt down" of some sectors of the economy here. ...The information janitors/ ***------------------------****-------------------------*** --------- BIOS - Bilingual IT Systems and Support --------- BiOS full-service IT solutions has a new service. Working with our fully licenced temporary dispatch group, we are now able to provide Japan in-country workers for companies not yet registered in Japan. This innovative service is available for companies needing to hire staff for Japanese customers, but who are unable to commit to the expense and infrastructure of maintaining an office in Japan. We take care of all aspects of the employment, contracting, and dispatch -- including management of the employee. Also, if you're thinking of Cloud office solutions, take a look at Microsoft's new Business Productivity Online Standard Suite. Terrie mentions Exchange Online in TT602, and we can do the implementations for you. For more information on this and other SI and IT services, in English or Japanese: Phone: (03) 4588-2220, Email: solutions at biosjp.com Web: www.biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ NEWS - IOM helps foreign residents wanting to leave - Summer Time switch to save electricity? - New biodegradable plastic much stronger - 16 foreign nurses pass national exams - Higashikokubaru for Tokyo governor? -> IOM helps foreign residents wanting to leave The International Organization for Migration (IOM) has announced a service to help financially constrained foreigners who were living in the earthquake zone from Aomori down to Chiba to evacuate from Japan. Apparently IOM has already helped more than 100 people leave the country by paying for transportation to the airport and one-way flights out of the country. ***Ed: Interesting, we didn't even know there was such an organization. This is the first time for them to operate in Japan.** (Source: TT commentary from nikkei.com, Mar 26, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110326D26JF030.htm -> Summer Time switch to save electricity? One of the more interesting ideas to save electricity this coming summer is to put the country on Summer Time. Although common elsewhere in the world, after a short period right after the War, Japan has carefully avoided setting clocks forward an hour due to complaints from farmers and others. However, it appears that by switching to Summer Time and extending the effective day light hours, the country may save as much as 930,000 kiloliters of crude oil for power generation -- about the same as what the nation's rail operators will use over the same 10-week summer period. (Source: TT commentary from reuters.com, Mar 26, 2011) http://af.reuters.com/article/energyOilNews/idAFL3E7EQ00I20110326?sp=true -> New biodegradable plastic much stronger A company that we really like, Kaneka Corporation, is a real power house of inventions and new technology and has come up with another winner. The company says it has fitted out a trial factory capable of producing 1,000 tons of PHBH plastic, a biodegradable material produced by microbes from vegetable oil. If the trial facility works out, the company will upgrade for 10,000 tons/year. Compared to regular biodegradable plastics, Kaneka PHBH withstands heat and stretching better and will be used for supermarket shopping bags and farm-based PVC applications. (Source: TT commentary from nikkei.com, Mar 25, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/TNKS/Nni20110324D24JSN02.htm?NS-query=kaneka -> 16 foreign nurses pass national exams The number of foreign nurses passing the national nursing exams is still just 4% of the total, but at least this time around 16 Indonesian and Filipino nurses made the grade, compared with just 3 who passed in 2009. The Health Ministry agreed last year to make the exams a bit more foreigner friendly by rephrasing of difficult kanji questions, and naming some diseases in English. (Source: TT commentary from japantimes.co.jp, Mar 26, 2011) http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nn20110326b1.html -> Higashikokubaru for Tokyo governor? Of the five new contenders for the job of Governor of Tokyo, we believe that only Hideo Higashikokubaru has the name recognition needed to make a serious run against incumbent governor Shintaro Ishihara. Higashikokubaru was the former governor of Miyazaki and prior to that a well-known comedian. He ended several months of speculation by announcing he would run the week before last. Unfortunately governor Ishihara has decided at 78 that three terms is not enough and will run again. ***Ed: One wonders if Ishihara will ever be brought to book for the Shinginko debacle. One billion dollars is a lot of cash for the city to lose.** (Source: TT commentary from asahi.com, Mar 09, 2011) http://www.asahi.com/english/TKY201103080173.html NOTE: Broken links Many online news sources remove their articles after just a few days of posting them, thus breaking our links -- we apologize for the inconvenience. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** -------- Essential Business Reference in English ---------- If you're a manager or director of a company in Japan, you need these references with detailed explanations in English!!! - Japan Staff Employment Law Guide - 1st Edition Published June, 2010 (JPY 21,000) - Japan Master Tax Guide 2010/11 Published July, 2010 (JPY 18,375) - Japan Corporation Law Guide - 2nd Edition Published November, 2010 (JPY 22,050) *Above prices include tax For more details: support at cch.co.jp, call 03-6234-3980. Web: https://www.cch-japan.jp/contents/register/form www.cch-japan.jp ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ CANDIDATE ROUND UP/VACANCIES => BiOS, a Division of the LINC Media group, is actively marketing the following positions for customers setting up or expanding in Japan, as well as other employers of bilinguals. ** HIGHLIGHTED POSITION Bank Operations Staff ? Tokyo BiOS is currently looking for 2 to 3 candidates who are experienced in banking operations involving either payment process support or bank account maintenance, to work on-site at a global bank in Tokyo. This is a great opportunity for those who would like to take your experience at local banks further to a leading international bank. Also suitable for someone re-entering the workforce. The candidates should have at least two years of banking operations experience and should have general knowledge of data management/administration. Remuneration is JPY3m ? JPY4m annual, depending on your experience and skill level. ** POSITIONS VACANT - IT Infrastructure Engr, Medical Devices, JPY4m ? JPY5m - Data Center Support Engineer, iBank, JPY4m ? JPY5m - Project Manager (Data Center), Insurance JPY7m ? JPY9m - Tech Support Analyst, global IT co JPY5m ? JPY6m - Procurement Officer, ibank JPY4m ? JPY5m Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: kenji.sakota at biosjp.com ** BiOS Job Mail Every 2 weeks BiOS sends out a regular communication to its job seeking candidates, called BiOS Job Mail. Every edition carries a list of BiOS's current and most up-to-date vacancies, with each entry featuring a short job description and a direct link to the main entry on the BiOS home page. Regardless of whether you are unemployed and searching, thinking about a career change, or just curious to know if there is something out there that might suit you better, the BiOS Job Mail newsletter is an easy and convenient way for you to stay informed. If you would like to register for the BiOS Job Mail, or to find out more, please email kenji.sakota at biosjp.com. Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: kenji.sakota at biosjp.com. ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ UPCOMING EVENTS/ANNOUNCEMENTS ------------- Entrepreneur Seminar in Tokyo --------------- Start a Company in Japan Entrepreneur's Handbook Seminar 23rd of April, 2011 If you have been considering setting up your own company, find out what it takes to make it successful. Terrie Lloyd, founder of over 13 start-up companies in Japan, will be giving an English-language seminar and Q and A on starting up a company in Japan. Over 450 people have taken this course so far. This is an ideal opportunity to find out what is involved, and to ask specific questions that are not normally answered in business books. All materials are in English and are Japan-focused. For more details: http://www.japaninc.com/entrepreneur_handbook_seminar ----------------------------------------------------------- ------------------ ICA Event - April 21 ------------------- Speaker: Marc Einstein, Industry Manager - Frost & Sullivan Title: APAC Mobile & Wireless Outlook in 2011 Details: Complete event details at http://www.icajapan.jp/ (RSVP Required) Date: Thursday, April 21, 2011 Time: 6:30 Doors open, Buffet Dinner included and cash bar Cost: 4,000 yen (members), 6,000 yen (non-members) Open to all. Venue is The Foreign Correspondents' Club of Japan http://www.fccj.or.jp/aboutus/map ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CORRECTIONS/FEEDBACK In this section we run comments and corrections submitted by readers. We encourage you to spot our mistakes and amplify our points, by email, to editors at terrie.com. *** In TT606 we did a quick round up of radiation facts and how the fear factor has impacted life and work in Tokyo. We got lots of feedback, many thanks. => Reader 1 comments: On the numbers side of things. For Radiation Sickness, I think you meant 500mSv or 500,000uSv, not 500,000 mSv. [Ed: Yes, indeed] => Reader 2 comments: "Nuclear IS Green Energy." [Ed: Hmmm, he has a point there!] *********************************************************** END SUBSCRIBERS: 8,802 members as of March 27th, 2011 (We purge our list regularly.) +++ ABOUT US STAFF Written by: Terrie Lloyd (terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com) HELP: E-mail Terrie-request at mailman.japaninc.com with the word 'help' in the subject or body (don't include the quotes), and you will get back a message with instructions. FEEDBACK Send letters (Feedback, Inquiries & Information) to the editor to terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com. ADVERTISING INFORMATION For more information on advertising in this newsletter, Contact ads at japaninc.com. SUBSCRIBE Get Terrie's Take by giving your name and email address at http://www.japaninc.com/newsletters/free_sign_up, or go straight to Mailman at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ Copyright 2011 Japan Inc. Communications Inc. ----------------- Japan Inc opens up Japan ---------------- J at pan Inc is Japan's only independently published English- language business website. Authoritatively chronicling online the business trends in Japan, each posting brings you in-depth analysis of business, people and technology in the world's second largest economy. Visit www.japaninc.com for the best business insight on Japan available. ----------------------------------------------------------- -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From terrie at mailman.japaninc.com Sun Apr 3 23:54:55 2011 From: terrie at mailman.japaninc.com (Terrie's Take) Date: Sun, 3 Apr 2011 23:54:55 +0900 Subject: Terrie's Take 608 -- Disasters and Weakness of Manufacturing Monopolies, e-biz news from Japan Message-ID: * * * * * * * * * T E R R I E 'S T A K E * * * * * * * A weekly roundup of news & information from Terrie Lloyd. (http://www.terrie.com) General Edition Sunday, April 03, 2011, Issue No. 608 +++ INDEX - What's New -- Problems with Manufacturer Monopolies - News -- Which Charities are Safe to Support? - Candidate Roundup/Vacancies - Upcoming Events - Corrections/Feedback - News Credits SUBSCRIBE to, UNSUBSCRIBE from Terrie's Take at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take, or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ ---------- UPGRADE TODAY TO PBXL IP TELEPHONY ---------- PBXL has the solution for your office. PBXL will purchase and dispose of your outdated, unsupported phone system and provide you with state of the art Cisco VoIP telephony. PBXL provides the features and flexibility your business needs to compete including computer telephony, iPhone integration, proactive monitoring, and bundled support and maintenance. For additional information call us anytime at 03-4550-1600, e-mail us at info at pbxl.jp or visit http://en.pbxl.co.jp/ ----------- PBXL is BUSINESS COMMUNICATIONS ------------ +++ WHAT'S NEW One of the things that has made Japan a ferocious competitor has been the ability of its largest companies to continually improve systems, eliminate inventory, and to integrate manufacturing operations with their hundreds of suppliers. Toyota, Nissan, Sony and the many other brands that account for much of the nation's exports are leaders in this form of lean manufacturing and have used the model to dent the impact of neighboring China's much cheaper workforce and flood of investment. But as the practice of Just-in-Time (JIT) and Kaizen has evolved over the last 10-15 years, it has been inevitable that from a diverse environment of many suppliers competing for the business of the majors, smaller companies have gradually disappeared and only the strongest of the second-tier firms have remained. In some cases, despite the obvious threat to JIT viability, only one supplier has survived. Toyota learned the dangers of having a single supplier when in 1997 there was a major fire at the plant of a brake valve vendor, Aishin Seiki. For a while it looked like Toyota might have to shut down its auto production, and this was only narrowly averted by Toyota finding ways internally to resolve the shortages. This event has become a business case study in JIT short-comings, and one would think that Japanese firms have learned not to repeat such experiences. But as the Tohoko-Kanto earthquake and tsunami of March 11th have proved, over-reliance on single suppliers still appears to be a problem. [Continued below...] -------- Bilingual Social Media Software Solutions -------- Social media and mobile applications development in both English and Japanese now available from MetroWorks Ltd., here in Tokyo. We developed the major applications being used by the Metropolis magazine, and are producing solutions for foreign firms seeking to develop audiences in Japan. SNS, ranking engines, eCommerce, email marketing tracking, and of course website front ends for the iPhone and other mobile platforms. 650 engineers in Vietnam for larger off-shored projects. For enquiries, contact: sales at metroworks.jp ------------------------------------------------------------ [...Article continues] Of the 3,000 or so parts that go into the average car, about 230 of them are in short supply or simply not available at all following the earthquake. We have heard on the grapevine that problems at key electronics suppliers like Alps Electric, are holding up not just auto production but also home electronics and other equipment as well. We understand that 6 of Alps' 7 major factories were in the affected areas and most of them were damaged, with some being knocked out for months. If you've been reading the papers, then you'll already know that the top three makers of zinc and zinc coated steel panels for auto production have been hard hit. Supplies are down by a massive 70%, as around 40% of the market is supplied by a single factory in Hachinohe, Amori, owned by Mitsui Mining. Some of that factory is still under water. You can add to this picture the shortage of finished copper, ethylene, all kinds of solvents, and other industrial products which are essential in the manufacture of final consumer products. An especially poignant story is that of Xirallic, a special paint pigment that gives cars a shiny metallic finish and which has helped significantly drive sales of upmarket vehicles that bring most of automakers' profits these days. Xirallic is produced by a German firm called Merck (not the pharma company) in only one factory in the world -- at Onahama, a short 40km drive from the stricken Fukushima power plant... Uh, oh... Because this factory has been knocked out for at least another 6-8 weeks, many thousands of auto orders at Chrysler, Toyota, GM, Ford, Honda, and others have been delayed or cancelled. Now Merck must be hoping the government doesn't extend that 30km evacuation zone around the Daiichi power plant to 80km, as the US government has been advising them to do! The problem of over-concentration doesn't just exist in autos. Take for example the cleaning agent hydrogen peroxide. About 75% of the supply of the substance comes from Japan and this also impacts paper bleaching and electronics manufacturing globally. The two major suppliers of hydrogen peroxide are Mitsubishi Gas Chemical, which produces about 50% and whose Kashima plant was knocked out of operation, and Adeka which has had to reduce operations at its Fuji Plant because of the electricity blackouts. This is one reason why there is a shortage of printing paper right now -- quite apart from the loss of six Nippon Paper plants and a Maruzen Petrochemical factory that makes most of the nation's printing ink... Another challenge is the supply of electronics. Take IC wafers and NAND memory for example. Japan accounts for 60% of the world's supply of wafers and Toshiba supplies about 40% of the world's NAND chips, which go into pretty much every home entertainment device, including the Apple iPod2. Although the Toshiba plant is in Yokkaichi, hundreds of kilometers to the south of the earthquake zone, the momentary power outage when Fukushima Daiichi went off line damaged sensitive equipment and Toshiba is saying that production will be affected for some time. Actually, for an interesting map of the many electronics companies producing around Japan, take a look at this: http://bit.ly/fAfEXv Another single-supplier example that has been highlighted by the disaster and which must surely result in legislative changes in the future is that of power generation and Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO). The fact that TEPCO has had a monopoly on power generation for the largest power consumption region in Japan for over 100 years has meant that the company has had little incentive to modernize and future-proof its systems. As we have watched the Fukushima emergency unfold, we couldn't help wondering whether if Japan had had an open power generation market then probably other suppliers could have provided alternative power post-disaster. They would also provide alternatives to the obsolete reactors in the TEPCO generation network. Amazingly, the No. 1 reactor in the Fukushima Daiichi plant, at 40 years old, is actually only the third oldest reactor... We wonder where the other two are and why they are still operating? Daiichi No. 1 was due to be decommissioned in February, but the Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency (NISA), which after all only has one company to oversight, approved TEPCO's request to extend operation for the reactor for another 10 years. If there were other players approved besides TEPCO, the government could require them to use only the latest technology, which is much safer and controllable, and to contribute funds to research into new generations of reactors, such as thorium reactors. More importantly, they would allow NISA to upgrade its baseline for evaluations and decision making. Our guess is that while TEPCO is struggling to put together US$20bn-plus to address the replacement of the Fukushima facility, the government could authorize 3-5 smaller competitors to start operations and these firms would bring at least the same amount of investment to the table to create smaller, safer operations in more diverse numbers and more diverse locations. All in all, looking at the lessons learned from the aftermath of the disaster, we think Japan needs to revisit the wisdom of eliminating diversity in its supply networks. Yes, we understand that large businesses, whether authorized monopolies or not, want to have single-point supply chains and more control over their suppliers, so as to extract the best commercial advantage. However, just as farmers have found with nature and factory farms, over-focus and over-control removes the ability to deal with calamities as they threaten such highly-tuned systems. In the food production world, the calamities are new viruses, insects, and the weather. In the manufacturing business the threats are not so different. We believe that the Japanese government needs to require the nation's leading foreign exchange earners to urgently engage in business continuity and supply chain diversity planning. Companies should be required to evaluate and plan for the effects of earthquakes, floods, fires, financial collapses, industrial espionage, and even threats of war. However, rather than just limiting these activities to building scenarios and plans to deal with such challenges -- all of which will be limited by the imaginations of those involved in such work, companies should be required to add back into their commercial equations another important variable -- that of diversity. Companies need to ensure that there is no instance of a single supplier for key components, nor a single point (or region) of production. ...The information janitors/ ***------------------------****-------------------------*** --------- BIOS - Bilingual IT Systems and Support --------- BiOS full-service IT solutions has a new service. Working with our fully licenced temporary dispatch group, we are now able to provide Japan in-country workers for companies not yet registered in Japan. This innovative service is available for companies needing to hire staff for Japanese customers, but who are unable to commit to the expense and infrastructure of maintaining an office in Japan. We take care of all aspects of the employment, contracting, and dispatch -- including management of the employee. Also, if you're thinking of Cloud office solutions, take a look at Microsoft's new Business Productivity Online Standard Suite. Terrie mentions Exchange Online in TT602, and we can do the implementations for you. For more information on this and other SI and IT services, in English or Japanese: Phone: (03) 4588-2220, Email: solutions at biosjp.com Web: www.biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ NEWS - Demand for portable cookers up 400% - Which quake charities are safe? - How to finance the relief effort? - Restaurant ranking firm stock price falls -> Demand for portable cookers up 400% One company making hay out of the disaster in Tohoku/Sendai is the portable gas cooker maker, Iwatani. Many survivors are still living in primitive conditions and are having to find alternative means of preparing food while waiting for official government assistance -- which may still take some weeks. Iwatani is shipping 150,000 portable stoves in April, about 400% of the normal volume. The number of gas canisters being shipped is also up 50%, at 4.2m canisters a month. (Source: TT commentary from nikkei.co.jp, Apr 2, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110401D01JFA05.htm -> Which quake charities are safe? One of the unfortunate side events of a major disaster is the appearance of fake charities to skim cash from concerned donors worldwide. While we haven't heard of any specific instances, apparently the US FBI has warned that such scams are proliferating. One way to ascertain whether Japan-related charities are safe to give to is checking whether they are registered with Charity Navigator, at www.charitynavigator.org. As of March 25th, 32 major US charities had donated more than US$163m and many more donations are coming from individuals. ***Ed: Two charities that we know to be safe, but which are not listed with Charity Navigator because they are too small to meet the organization's requirements are www.jhelp.com and http://www.2hj.org/index.php/eng_home.** (Source: TT commentary from wsj.com, Apr 2, 2011) http://on.wsj.com/eNu6ku -> How to finance the relief effort? DPJ party sources are apparently saying that the government is considering a number of measures on how to pay for the massive relief effort needed for Tohoku/Sendai. The government may need to find as much as US$300bn and among the options being discussed are special taxes, including a form of temporarily increased consumption tax, and issuing "disaster bonds". Others have suggested having the Bank of Japan buy the bonds (a type of quantitative easing measure), but so far this appears to be being ruled out since it could lead to inflation. ***Ed: Our guess is a temporary increase in consumption tax from 5% to 7%-10% and once there, it won't be lowered again.** (Source: TT commentary from japantimes.co.jp, Apr 2, 2011) http://search.japantimes.co.jp/mail/nn20110402a2.html -> Restaurant ranking firm stock price falls Regardless of what you might think after seeing shoppers return to the streets of Tokyo, they are apparently not spending as much as they did prior to the March 11 quake, and they are going home earlier. As a result, restaurants that are normally packed are now really hurting. This fact hasn't been lost on stock buyers, who are dumping stocks of "Gurunavi" (Gourmet Navigator), which not only ranks restaurants but also sells ingredients and services to them. We expect sell-offs of similar entertainment stocks in the next few weeks. (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Apr 1, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110401D01SS659.htm NOTE: Broken links Many online news sources remove their articles after just a few days of posting them, thus breaking our links -- we apologize for the inconvenience. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** -------- Essential Business Reference in English ---------- If you're a manager or director of a company in Japan, you need these references with detailed explanations in English!!! - Japan Staff Employment Law Guide - 1st Edition Published June, 2010 (JPY 21,000) - Japan Master Tax Guide 2010/11 Published July, 2010 (JPY 18,375) - Japan Corporation Law Guide - 2nd Edition Published November, 2010 (JPY 22,050) *Above prices include tax * As a limited offer for TT readers: 1 title, 5% discount, more than 2 titles, 10% discount. For more details: support at cch.co.jp, call 03-6234-3980. Web: https://www.cch-japan.jp/contents/register/form www.cch-japan.jp ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ CANDIDATE ROUND UP/VACANCIES => BiOS, a Division of the LINC Media group, is actively marketing the following positions for customers setting up or expanding in Japan, as well as other employers of bilinguals. ** HIGHLIGHTED POSITION Desktop/IMAC Engineer ? Tokyo BiOS is currently looking for an IMAC Engineer to work on-site at a global investment banking in Tokyo. A candidate will be participating in a large-scale IT infrastructure refreshment project and will be responsible for PC kitting, server refreshment, office application install, project workflow/manual documentation preparation, etc. at more than 2,000 IT equipments environment. This will be a 6-month project with possibility of renewal depends on the project?s progress. Remuneration is JPY3.8m ? JPY4.8m depending on your experience and skills level. ** POSITIONS VACANT - Account Manager (IT Outsourcing/Recruiting), BiOS, JPY3.5m ? JPY4.5m - Account Manager (IT Services), BiOS, JPY4m ? JPY5m - Project Manager (Data Center), Insurance JPY7m ? JPY9m - Bilingual Desktop Engineer, BiOS JPY4m ? JPY6m - Vendor Management Contract Admin, ibank JPY3.5m ? JPY4.5m Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: kenji.sakota at biosjp.com ** BiOS Job Mail Every 2 weeks BiOS sends out a regular communication to its job seeking candidates, called BiOS Job Mail. Every edition carries a list of BiOS's current and most up-to-date vacancies, with each entry featuring a short job description and a direct link to the main entry on the BiOS home page. Regardless of whether you are unemployed and searching, thinking about a career change, or just curious to know if there is something out there that might suit you better, the BiOS Job Mail newsletter is an easy and convenient way for you to stay informed. If you would like to register for the BiOS Job Mail, or to find out more, please email kenji.sakota at biosjp.com. Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: kenji.sakota at biosjp.com. ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ UPCOMING EVENTS/ANNOUNCEMENTS ------------- Entrepreneur Seminar in Tokyo --------------- Start a Company in Japan Entrepreneur's Handbook Seminar 23rd of April, 2011 If you have been considering setting up your own company, find out what it takes to make it successful. Terrie Lloyd, founder of over 13 start-up companies in Japan, will be giving an English-language seminar and Q and A on starting up a company in Japan. Over 450 people have taken this course so far. This is an ideal opportunity to find out what is involved, and to ask specific questions that are not normally answered in business books. All materials are in English and are Japan-focused. For more details: http://www.japaninc.com/entrepreneur_handbook_seminar ----------------------------------------------------------- ------------------ ICA Event - April 21 ------------------- Speaker: Marc Einstein, Industry Manager - Frost & Sullivan Title: APAC Mobile & Wireless Outlook in 2011 Details: Complete event details at http://www.icajapan.jp/ (RSVP Required) Date: Thursday, April 21, 2011 Time: 6:30 Doors open, Buffet Dinner included and cash bar Cost: 4,000 yen (members), 6,000 yen (non-members) Open to all. Venue is The Foreign Correspondents' Club of Japan http://www.fccj.or.jp/aboutus/map ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CORRECTIONS/FEEDBACK In this section we run comments and corrections submitted by readers. We encourage you to spot our mistakes and amplify our points, by email, to editors at terrie.com. *** No comments this week. *********************************************************** END SUBSCRIBERS: 8,809 members as of April 03, 2011 (We purge our list regularly.) +++ ABOUT US STAFF Written by: Terrie Lloyd (terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com) HELP: E-mail Terrie-request at mailman.japaninc.com with the word 'help' in the subject or body (don't include the quotes), and you will get back a message with instructions. FEEDBACK Send letters (Feedback, Inquiries & Information) to the editor to terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com. ADVERTISING INFORMATION For more information on advertising in this newsletter, Contact ads at japaninc.com. SUBSCRIBE Get Terrie's Take by giving your name and email address at http://www.japaninc.com/newsletters/free_sign_up, or go straight to Mailman at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ Copyright 2011 Japan Inc. Communications Inc. ----------------- Japan Inc opens up Japan ---------------- J at pan Inc is Japan's only independently published English- language business website. Authoritatively chronicling online the business trends in Japan, each posting brings you in-depth analysis of business, people and technology in the world's second largest economy. Visit www.japaninc.com for the best business insight on Japan available. ----------------------------------------------------------- -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From terrie at mailman.japaninc.com Sun Apr 10 23:52:56 2011 From: terrie at mailman.japaninc.com (Terrie's Take) Date: Sun, 10 Apr 2011 23:52:56 +0900 Subject: Terrie's Take 609 -- Looking for Business After a Disaster, e-biz news from Japan Message-ID: * * * * * * * * * T E R R I E 'S T A K E * * * * * * * A weekly roundup of news & information from Terrie Lloyd. (http://www.terrie.com) General Edition Sunday, April 10 2011, Issue No. 609 +++ INDEX - What's New -- Looking for Business Opportunities after the Disaster - News -- Tokyo Office Vacancies at Record High - Candidate Roundup/Vacancies - Upcoming Events - Corrections/Feedback -- PTSD: Post Trauma Stress Disorder - News Credits SUBSCRIBE to, UNSUBSCRIBE from Terrie's Take at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take, or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ ------------ PBXL IP TELEPHONY AND CLOUD BCP -------------- Since PBXL started in 2006, we have consistently focused on providing high quality, cloud based telephony services. Designed around a high-availability, data center based deployment, we are proud to report that our customers were able to both make and receive calls during the earthquake and ensuing challenges. Additionally, due to PBXL?s flexible system design, PBXL was able to continue providing call center services and other enterprise connectivity to both offices and remote workers. With summer coming, and with it likely power shortages, PBXL?s remote access and office solutions enable a mobile workforce to continue to service customers regardless of location, without requiring a phone number change for many Tokyo and Yokohama offices. Call us at 03-4550-2557, e-mail us at bcp at pbxl.jp or for more information on Tokyo and Yokohama power-safe telephony visit us at http://en.pbxl.jp/bcp.php ------------ PBXL is BUSINESS COMMUNICATIONS -------------- +++ WHAT'S NEW In every cloud there is supposed to be a silver lining, and in the case of the Tohoku-Kanto earthquake, the silver lining is the massive reconstruction effort that the government is planning. Estimates are that the nation will spend around JPY25trn (US$300bn approx.) to re-establish the communities and businesses destroyed by the quake and the tsunami. This will mean raw materials for at least 30,000 temporary homes over the next two months, and 60,000 units by August -- even before the main reconstruction effort and possibly millions of tons of wood, concrete, steel, and glass are put to use over the next 2-3 years. With numbers like these, of course many companies around the world are wondering if there are opportunities for them to participate in what will be the largest reconstruction effort anywhere in the world for the next couple of years. Among those already receiving advance notice of orders from major trading houses and construction materials suppliers are foreign suppliers of energy in the form of coal, LNG/LPG, and oil; timber, especially glue-lam and plywood; and metals such as iron ore, copper, zinc, etc. But to cash in on a potential US$300bn rebuilding bonanza, only companies that are plugged in to the Japanese materials supplier network are likely to see much opportunity. Partly because the Japanese are not likely to reduce import standards or accept sizes and grades that are unfamiliar, and partly because they are dealing with a patient population of refugees who know it could be several years before things are somewhat back to normal. Therefore, with some extra time up their sleeves, the powers that be will not feel pressured to step far outside their comfort zone. And this is why when we see offers on various social media sites, such as one that came up a few days ago on Facebook -- a gentleman with 50 ready-to-go prefab housing units and wondering how to get them in to Japan, we just thought to ourselves, "Very, very difficult." Yes, Japan has plenty of need, but the tsunami has not washed away national characteristics, and the building materials sector was always a tough space to compete in anyway. So are there any opportunities to be had for foreign suppliers and foreigners in Japan, as a result of the disaster? [Continued below...] -------- Bilingual Social Media Software Solutions -------- Social media and mobile applications development in both English and Japanese now available from MetroWorks Ltd., here in Tokyo. We developed the major applications being used by the Metropolis magazine, and are producing solutions for foreign firms seeking to develop audiences in Japan. SNS, ranking engines, eCommerce, email marketing tracking, and of course website front ends for the iPhone and other mobile platforms. 650 engineers in Vietnam for larger off-shored projects. For enquiries, contact: sales at metroworks.jp ------------------------------------------------------------ [...Article continues] Firstly, there are very clearly a number of opportunities in the short term for specialist suppliers. As we note in our news section below, a Scottish firm named Aggreko has landed a major contract with TEPCO to supply a number of diesel and gas-fired portable generators for at least a year, starting from June. The generators will provide around 200MW of power, a drop in the bucket compared to what's needed, but a good indication of the possibilities. We can only imagine that there are other leasing companies getting similar orders. Then there have been many companies and organizations which have lost all their infrastructure. While the government is planning to offer low-cost loans for reconstruction, these will probably come with significant hurdles for companies that may have been struggling anyway, and so we imagine that there will be plenty of opportunity for long-term lease of capital equipment, particularly where the leasing company controls what brand equipment is to be used -- thus potentially breaking down decades old supplier-customer relationships in return for cheaper rates. Where would this be likely to happen? Well, for example, in hospitals that have lost all their electronic equipment and have to re-establish themselves. Indeed, with all the injuries and suffering that has gone on in this disaster, medical equipment seems to be a sure bet in terms of demand. Other opportunities involve soothing people's fears. A company selling tsunami resistant refugee structures to be built in the middle of coastal towns would seem obvious. Not sure what these would look like, but as a model, most towns already have fire lookout towers that extend 20m-30m into the air, so maybe a concrete and steel version of that but with a larger footprint and top platform areas would work. Then, city offices investing in satellite phones would seem to be another obvious opportunity. As we have seen both in the major temblor than in the recent big aftershock, no power and circuit overloads can mean no phones, and the authorities at least need to maintain communications. Looking a bit further south, we have heard that many people in Tokyo are worried about pending power restrictions and blackouts and so are investing in wind and solar power generation. Recent wind power generators operate with gentle breezes and can easily fit on a small suburban roof, producing 500W or so, which is enough when combined with off-peak batteries to keep a small cooling system going during the hottest days of summer. Indeed, if we thought our landlord would be flexible enough, we'd be looking at one of these for our office, as well. Then, with all the charity scams going on, there is a clear need for someone like www.charitynavigator.com to start up in Japan and provide a ranking system to domestic charities that are probably too small and under resourced to make it into that company's international list. The Charity Navigator organization is quickly becoming a referee to help larger charity groups in the USA and elsewhere to channel their funds, and yet you won't find any smaller but effective local groups anywhere on their site. But perhaps the biggest opportunities are going to be on the periphery of the disaster, specifically, investments and buy-outs of small and medium-sized companies in Tokyo and surrounds that were already stressed by the weak domestic recovery and which have now been knocked on to their backsides by radiation fears, consumers' self restraint, and impending rolling black outs this summer. These companies are not going to get government funding because they are too small, and/or too far away from the directly affected areas. They will include any company involved in entertainment, advertising and media, real estate, hotel accommodation and general tourism, luxury goods and services, and other businesses impacted by the reduction in spending of activities seen as being frivolous. In our opinion, this would be a very good time for investment funds specializing in SMEs to be reviewing Japan and moving in with offers of partnerships or majority buy-outs. ...The information janitors/ ***------------------------****-------------------------*** --------- BIOS - Bilingual IT Systems and Support --------- BiOS full-service IT solutions has a new service. Working with our fully licenced temporary dispatch group, we are now able to provide Japan in-country workers for companies not yet registered in Japan. This innovative service is available for companies needing to hire staff for Japanese customers, but who are unable to commit to the expense and infrastructure of maintaining an office in Japan. We take care of all aspects of the employment, contracting, and dispatch -- including management of the employee. Also, if you're thinking of Cloud office solutions, take a look at Microsoft's new Business Productivity Online Standard Suite. Terrie mentions Exchange Online in TT602, and we can do the implementations for you. For more information on this and other SI and IT services, in English or Japanese: Phone: (03) 4588-2220, Email: solutions at biosjp.com Web: www.biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ NEWS - Where there's a cartel there's a way, for OTC drugs - Tokyo office vacancies hit record - Japanese ambassador to Ivory Coast rescued - New Australian ambassador to Japan named - Large power generators order goes to UK -> Where there's a cartel there's a way, for OTC drugs Although the Health Ministry decided it didn't like Rakuten and other internet companies making money out of drugs sold online, it is happy to let anyone who wants to include pharmacists to do so. So it is that the Home Medicine Association through wholesaler Toho Holdings will be selling drugs online, but include a twist -- Toho will ship the medicines to a drug store for customers to pick up. ***Ed: This makes a mockery of the Health Ministry's internet ban, in that although the drugs are shipped via a pharmacy, users are still unlikely to get any supervision in how to use them. Toho reckons that they will be shipping to around 10,000 pharmacists around the nation.** (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Apr 5, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110405D05EE994.htm -> Tokyo office vacancies hit record According to the latest commercial real estate survey by Miki Shoji, office vacancies in Tokyo hit a record 9.19%, the highest level since Miki Shoji started compiling data in 1990. The company said that the situation in Osaka, despite firms moving some operations to that location, is even worse, with a vacancy rate of 12.4%. ***Ed: Clearly we're near the bottom of the commercial real estate market and our take is that vacancy rates will stay at this level for another 6 months or so, as the earthquake bankruptcies start to take effect. After that, a recovery is likely, and rents are likely to recover. So now is the right time to be moving if you have that option.** (Source: TT commentary from bloomberg.com, Apr 7, 2011) http://bloom.bg/eFGCSX -> Japanese ambassador to Ivory Coast rescued While Tokyo may not have been so happy with the French Embassy's decision to push all French nationals to evacuate from Tokyo after the March 11th earthquake, all will have been forgiven with the assistance that France offered to Japan's ambassador to the Ivory Coast this last week. The embassy in Abidjan was caught in the firefights between defending Gbagbo loyalists and Ouattara fighters invading the capital. French helicopters apparently landed on the roof of the embassy and plucked the Japanese staff to safety. (Source: TT commentary from afp at google.com, Apr 7, 2011) http://bit.ly/hzgALm -> New Australian ambassador to Japan named The new ambassador to Japan replacing long-serving Murray McLean will be Bruce Miller, who was named for the position this last week. Ambassador Miller is no stranger to Japan, having been posted to Tokyo previously from 1992-1996 and 2004-2009. He is a Japanese speaker and the Australian newspaper says that he should be well-informed, since he has been serving as deputy director of the intelligence agency, the Office of National Assessments. (Source: TT commentary from theaustralian.com.au, Apr 7, 2011) http://bit.ly/hMCr1g -> Large power generators order goes to UK While many firms around the world must be hoping they can share in the JPY25trn of rebuilding estimated to be required in Tohoku through to Ibaraki, at least one firm in the UK has already scored a substantial order for a number of diesel and gas-fired generators that will deliver 200MW of power by June. The company, Glasgow-based Aggreko, specializes in temporary power generators and will be shipping the units under a minimum 1-year contract. (Source: TT commentary from bbc.co.uk, Apr 4, 2011) http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-scotland-business-12956484 NOTE: Broken links Many online news sources remove their articles after just a few days of posting them, thus breaking our links -- we apologize for the inconvenience. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** -------- Essential Business Reference in English ---------- If you're a manager or director of a company in Japan, you need these references with detailed explanations in English!!! - Japan Staff Employment Law Guide - 1st Edition Published June, 2010 (JPY 21,000) - Japan Master Tax Guide 2010/11 Published July, 2010 (JPY 18,375) - Japan Corporation Law Guide - 2nd Edition Published November, 2010 (JPY 22,050) *Above prices include tax * As a limited offer for TT readers: 1 title, 5% discount, more than 2 titles, 10% discount. For more details: support at cch.co.jp, call 03-6234-3980. Web: https://www.cch-japan.jp/contents/register/form www.cch-japan.jp ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ CANDIDATE ROUND UP/VACANCIES => BiOS, a Division of the LINC Media group, is actively marketing the following positions for customers setting up or expanding in Japan, as well as other employers of bilinguals. ** HIGHLIGHTED POSITION Desktop/IMAC Engineer ? Tokyo BiOS is currently looking for an IMAC Engineer to work on-site at a global investment banking in Tokyo. A candidate will be participating in a large-scale IT infrastructure refreshment project and will be responsible for PC kitting, server refreshment, office application install, project workflow/manual documentation preparation, etc. at more than 2,000 IT equipments environment. This will be a 6-month project with possibility of renewal depends on the project?s progress. Remuneration is JPY3.8m ? JPY4.8m depending on your experience and skills level. ** POSITIONS VACANT - Account Manager (IT Outsourcing/Recruiting), BiOS, JPY3.5m ? JPY4.5m - Account Manager (IT Services), BiOS, JPY4m ? JPY5m - Project Manager (Data Center), Insurance JPY7m ? JPY9m - Bilingual Desktop Engineer, BiOS JPY4m ? JPY6m - Vendor Management Contract Admin, ibank JPY3.5m ? JPY4.5m Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: kenji.sakota at biosjp.com ** BiOS Job Mail Every 2 weeks BiOS sends out a regular communication to its job seeking candidates, called BiOS Job Mail. Every edition carries a list of BiOS's current and most up-to-date vacancies, with each entry featuring a short job description and a direct link to the main entry on the BiOS home page. Regardless of whether you are unemployed and searching, thinking about a career change, or just curious to know if there is something out there that might suit you better, the BiOS Job Mail newsletter is an easy and convenient way for you to stay informed. If you would like to register for the BiOS Job Mail, or to find out more, please email kenji.sakota at biosjp.com. Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: kenji.sakota at biosjp.com. ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ UPCOMING EVENTS/ANNOUNCEMENTS ------------- Entrepreneur Seminar in Tokyo --------------- Start a Company in Japan Entrepreneur's Handbook Seminar 23rd of April, 2011 If you have been considering setting up your own company, find out what it takes to make it successful. Terrie Lloyd, founder of over 13 start-up companies in Japan, will be giving an English-language seminar and Q and A on starting up a company in Japan. Over 450 people have taken this course so far. This is an ideal opportunity to find out what is involved, and to ask specific questions that are not normally answered in business books. All materials are in English and are Japan-focused. For more details: http://www.japaninc.com/entrepreneur_handbook_seminar ----------------------------------------------------------- ------------------ ICA Event - April 21 ------------------- Speaker: Marc Einstein, Industry Manager - Frost & Sullivan Title: APAC Mobile & Wireless Outlook in 2011 Details: Complete event details at http://www.icajapan.jp/ (RSVP Required) Date: Thursday, April 21, 2011 Time: 6:30 Doors open, Buffet Dinner included and cash bar Cost: 4,000 yen (members), 6,000 yen (non-members) Open to all. Venue is The Foreign Correspondents' Club of Japan http://www.fccj.or.jp/aboutus/map ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CORRECTIONS/FEEDBACK In this section we run comments and corrections submitted by readers. We encourage you to spot our mistakes and amplify our points, by email, to editors at terrie.com. *** TT606 has spurred a lot of feedback. Many thanks for this. As a reminder, we spoke about how the fear factor has impacted life and work in Tokyo. => Reader One: My family was directly involved in 9-11 and they took some months and a little therapy to get "right" with the world. I think Fukushima is no different. Actually, my step father is a nuclear chemist and he has been saying since the whole sordid affair began that the amounts of radioactivity are negligible and not to worry. To quote him "7 times zero is still zero". Not sure that helps you at all but it did set my mind at ease to a certain degree. Also, it is also important to remember that many in Japan are now suffering from PTSD. You can get a very good idea about how this affects people by reading about the after effects of 9-11 on the residents of NYC. Being originally from there I can tell you that my friends and family really truly understand what is going on for us on an emotional level. They don't panic or freak out, but instead offer well thought out comments and food for thought. Lastly, I wanted to share a link that a friend of mine sent me about radiation. I hope it helps you understand the situation even better, I know it has for me http://xkcd.com/radiation/ => Reader Two: Great newsletter as usual. I just wanted to respond on one point in your main article. "In our part of town, in the shopping triangle represented by Shinjuku to Shibuya and then through to Roppongi/Akasaka there is still a lot less people shopping and eating out than there usually are. Again, the average person is in a state of nervous agitation and the last thing they are thinking of is relaxing with friends at a restaurant or buying new clothes." I live in Kichijoji and it is a different story there. For the first few days after the earthquake of course things were quiet but for the past week the shops and restaurants have been heaving with people. I'm not sure if people are spending money as usual but they are certainly out and about. I think the reasons for the difference between here and central Tokyo are: 1) This area is a big residential area and people don't want to be spending time at home during difficult times like these. A lot of people in Japan live by themselves so prefer to go out and be with friends 2) People are leaving the city areas earlier and not staying to go out with colleagues as they usually would but returning to local neighborhoods and still spending money there 3) The proportion of foreigners outside of central Tokyo is much lower. Most of the people I see in Kichijoji these days are Japanese and there is noticeable absence of foreigners although the numbers were not that large to begin with. *********************************************************** END SUBSCRIBERS: 8,815 members as of April 10, 2011 (We purge our list regularly.) +++ ABOUT US STAFF Written by: Terrie Lloyd (terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com) HELP: E-mail Terrie-request at mailman.japaninc.com with the word 'help' in the subject or body (don't include the quotes), and you will get back a message with instructions. FEEDBACK Send letters (Feedback, Inquiries & Information) to the editor to terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com. ADVERTISING INFORMATION For more information on advertising in this newsletter, Contact ads at japaninc.com. SUBSCRIBE Get Terrie's Take by giving your name and email address at http://www.japaninc.com/newsletters/free_sign_up, or go straight to Mailman at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ Copyright 2011 Japan Inc. Communications Inc. ----------------- Japan Inc opens up Japan ---------------- J at pan Inc is Japan's only independently published English- language business website. Authoritatively chronicling online the business trends in Japan, each posting brings you in-depth analysis of business, people and technology in the world's second largest economy. Visit www.japaninc.com for the best business insight on Japan available. ----------------------------------------------------------- -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From terrie at mailman.japaninc.com Mon Apr 18 00:46:17 2011 From: terrie at mailman.japaninc.com (Terrie's Take) Date: Mon, 18 Apr 2011 00:46:17 +0900 Subject: Terrie's Take 610 -- Alternatives to Summer Power Cuts, e-biz news from Japan Message-ID: * * * * * * * * * T E R R I E 'S T A K E * * * * * * * A weekly roundup of news & information from Terrie Lloyd. (http://www.terrie.com) General Edition Sunday, April 17 2011, Issue No. 610 +++ INDEX - What's New -- Alternatives to Summer Power Cuts - News -- March disastrous for earnings, tourism - Candidate Roundup/Vacancies - Upcoming Events - Corrections/Feedback -- Toshiba's NAND shortages - News Credits SUBSCRIBE to, UNSUBSCRIBE from Terrie's Take at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take, or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ ------------ PBXL IP TELEPHONY AND CLOUD BCP -------------- Since PBXL started in 2006, we have consistently focused on providing high quality, cloud based telephony services. Designed around a high-availability, data center based deployment, we are proud to report that our customers were able to both make and receive calls during the earthquake and ensuing challenges. Additionally, due to PBXL?s flexible system design, PBXL was able to continue providing call center services and other enterprise connectivity to both offices and remote workers. With summer coming, and with it likely power shortages, PBXL?s remote access and office solutions enable a mobile workforce to continue to service customers regardless of location, without requiring a phone number change for many Tokyo and Yokohama offices. Call us at 03-4550-2557, e-mail us at bcp at pbxl.jp or for more information on Tokyo and Yokohama power-safe telephony visit us at http://en.pbxl.jp/bcp.php ------------ PBXL is BUSINESS COMMUNICATIONS -------------- +++ WHAT'S NEW Just about anywhere you go for business in Tokyo at the moment, whether a multinational's corporate headquarters or the corner store, all conversations start off with the nuclear crisis and the possible power cuts in summer. Consumers and companies alike dread the prospect of no production/wages and no air conditioning from July through September. And this year is supposed to be another scorcher like 2010 was. So just how much power will we be short of, and is the possibility of office staff having to work in 30-degree+ temperatures likely to happen? Well, just after the quake, certainly there were dire predictions that the nation would be short 27 gigawatts (peak of 60GW down to 33GW now). The government's reaction was that it would have to order across-the-board power consumption cuts of up to 25%, causing amongst other things for office thermostats to be set a few more degrees higher than normal (a sweat-inducing 28 degrees is "normal"). And this might still happen. But over the last 5 weeks, the authorities have come to realize that simply squeezing out power cuts is going to have an extremely negative effect on national productivity and could cause lasting damage to the nation's finances. Instead, they have turned their focus on to TEPCO, pressuring the company to find a ways to increase power generation to at least 50GW. As a result, TEPCO has developed a Rube Goldberg plan that allows it to cobble together a variety of old fossil fuel plants, mothballed hydro and geothermal plants, and simply buying in masses of temporary oil/gas generators and fuel, so that they can supply possibly 52GW or more by the end of July -- much closer to the anticipated peak August needs of 55GW - 60GW. Amongst the things TEPCO will do to achieve this out-of-thin-air magic includes: a) pumping water upstream of hydro dams in the off-peak hours (early morning hours) so that the water can be reused to drive turbines the following day, b) re-starting furloughed nuclear generators elsewhere in their network, and c) putting off maintenance (although we are assured, not nuclear maintenance) to avoid peak demand periods. At the same time, major manufacturers are thinking to move employee hours earlier in the day to achieve a type of daylight savings, imposing longer summer breaks, and dispatching employees to other parts of the country. Such measures are all well and good, but there is still going to be a gap come August, and what about winter and next summer? The Fukushima reactors will be entombed, so we can't expect any future power production from that facility. Surely there are some more meaningful/simpler ways to either reduce power consumption or increase its production? [Continued below...] --------- Tokyo's Fastest Growing Restaurant Guide -------- www.metrodining.jp If you like eating out and want to explore a little, or help others to do so, then you need to try out the latest Metropolis Magazine food application, Metrodining.jp. The result of 2 years of development, the database already has 600+ foreigner-friendly restaurants, and is adding 100+ a week to the list. First in town to offer user rankings and cell phone additions/comments. Watch the site closely, because in the next few weeks we will offer rewards for people adding more comments and establishments. If you own and have an interest in a restaurant, registering your operation is free of charge. For ad and other enquiries, contact: sales at metroworks.jp ------------------------------------------------------------ [...Article continues] We think that the government needs to show some Energy leadership by setting some inviolable principles which will guide them in action -- much the same as they used to hunt out surplus slush funds in the first two years of their term. The first should be: "Electricity is the lifeblood of the nation and its cheap, continuous availability needs to be guaranteed". Another should be: "Irrational laws and pork barrel funding need to be put aside in the pursuit of stable, safe electrical power generation." Once those principles are committed to, there are plenty of big, fat non-essential targets to root out. Here are just a few: 1. Pass a law to shut off power to all cooling/heating circuits of all vending machines around the Tokyo-thru-Tohoku region during the month of August. There are supposedly 5.5m vending machines in Japan and between them they use at least 1200kWh/year x 5.5m = 6.6TWh a year. Since most of the power is used for heating and cooling, we can probably assume that 15% of this is used in August (and in January next year). From what we can tell, about 1/3 of these machines are inside the TEPCO and Tohoku Electric Power service areas, and of these a bit less than half are drinks machines (according to the Nikkei, about 870,000 units). Therefore, around 160GW/hrs could potentially be saved in the electrical service area by turning them off just during August. Since this law would not be about punishing the vending companies, TEPCO would then compensate Coke, Suntory, and others for staff and basic operations costs while on pause for that month. We appreciate that Coke and others are already taking measures to turn off machine cooling systems for a portion of the day during summer, but this year, they should simply switch off completely and garner the PR of helping out Japan. John R. Harris has more to say about this in his blog, http://bit.ly/ibHj1D. 2. Go after all major convenience and electrical store chains, because they use lots of cooling/heating and lighting. We'd direct them to at least install LED lighting in replacement of fluorescent tubes and incandescent bulbs, and for the electrical stores to shut for 4 hours in the afternoons during August. With a 3-month tax break or subsidies for these chains as well as other smaller store operators, the government could easily force a mass conversion to energy saving devices, and the beneficial effects of such a move would last far beyond the coming summer. Indeed, such a mass changeover would bring down the cost of these devices substantially, as well as providing a massive boost for domestic electrical manufacturers. The process of becoming more power efficient has in fact already begun with some forward-looking companies. Seven/Eleven has said that it expects to save 125kWh a day per store by changing to LED lighting and installing solar cells on the roofs of 1,000 stores around the nation over the next few months. Now, if they were targeted to get government help, then we imagine they could speed up their program and do retrofits to all 6,000 stores in the TEPCO service area, saving a massive 750MWh/day in power. Then, if you included all the other operators' 10,000 or so convenience stores in the same region, the savings could be increased to around 2GWh/day. Not a small sum... and with massive benefits to the manufacturers of LED lighting and solar cell panels. 3. Speaking of solar cells, Japan churns out such large amounts of photovoltaic panels that you have to scratch your head as to why there isn't a crash program to increase production and purchase acres of them for installation into North Eastern Japan. One possible reason, pointed out by blogger/Market Entry specialist Tom Sato (http://www.tomsato.jp/tomsato.html) is that there is no where to physically install the huge number of panels that would be needed to replace a nuclear plant. Actually, there is lots of vacant farm land, but the law says it has to be used for farming. Tom points out that if the Central Union of Agricultural Cooperatives (Nokyo) was allowed to get into the power generation business via tenant "solar farmers" in return for supporting legislative changes about land use, then suddenly TEPCO would have a major competitor and we the population would get a green alternative energy source and a farming sector that could be profitable again... This is a very cunning strategy and one that would be politically acceptable. 4. Turn to the private power generation capabilities of JR East and major manufacturing firms, and have them supply the grid during non-peak hours. To some extent this already happens, but it needs to be coordinated and purposeful. According to a report by Investment firm Martin Currie, the energy production capability of JR East and other private firms is about 30GW. Of course they need their daytime production for themselves, but in the evenings and early mornings these facilities could be operated to reduce loads on TEPCO resources -- maybe they could be used to pump that water back up into the TEPCO hydro storage lake we were talking about before. 5. Then there are many interesting opportunities to develop the nation's thermal resources. Given that volcanoes and thermal hot spots are one of the few resources Japan has in surplus, it is strange that government R&D spending for geothermal power production has been zero since 2002, and yet in contrast, nuclear R&D receives JPY200bn a year. One report from earthpolicy.org (http://www.earth-policy.org/plan_b_updates/2011/update94) reckons that Japan could with conventional technology harvest about 80GW of geothermal power a year if it wanted to. What we hope, in any case, is that the Kan government starts to realize that while certain vested interests have had the nation focus on nuclear energy, these heavily populated and geologically unstable islands have to be the worst place in the world to build nuclear power stations. Instead, if they bite the bullet now and fund a build up of the installed user base of alternative energy, the resulting technology and market advances would stand Japan in good stead not only for energy independence, but also to provide the production base necessary for Japanese exporters to lead the alternative energy field in the future. ************ Lastly, there is a new Tokyo group of technologists with a website called RDTN.org. Their purpose is to provide an aggregate feed of nuclear radiation data from governmental, non-governmental and citizen-scientist sources. This data will be made available to everyone, including scientists and nuclear experts, who can provide context for lay people. They are kicking their project off by creating a mobile radiation sensor system to measure the levels near the schools in Fukushima. If this sounds interesting, then you might want to help them out. They are looking for cars and drivers to travel to Fukushima to take the readings in these areas. They also are looking for more funding. See more about them at: http://kck.st/hMXtdM. Contact them at: Info at RDTN.org. ...The information janitors/ ***------------------------****-------------------------*** --------- BIOS - Bilingual IT Systems and Support --------- BiOS full-service IT solutions has a new service. Working with our fully licenced temporary dispatch group, we are now able to provide Japan in-country workers for companies not yet registered in Japan. This innovative service is available for companies needing to hire staff for Japanese customers, but who are unable to commit to the expense and infrastructure of maintaining an office in Japan. We take care of all aspects of the employment, contracting, and dispatch -- including management of the employee. Also, if you're thinking of Cloud office solutions, take a look at Microsoft's new Business Productivity Online Standard Suite. Terrie mentions Exchange Online in TT602, and we can do the implementations for you. For more information on this and other SI and IT services, in English or Japanese: Phone: (03) 4588-2220, Email: solutions at biosjp.com Web: www.biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ NEWS - March trade earnings plunge massive 40% - Overall foreign departures from Japan - Tokyo tourism plunges - Australia to supply some temporary housing - Solar-powered water purification units => March trade earnings plunge massive 40% Although the final numbers are not in yet, according to a Quick Corporation study of economists, the expectation is that March trade volumes fell by at least 40%, with one economist predicting an actual JPY96bn deficit. While there is little consensus there will actually be a deficit for March, there does seem to be a consensus already for April -- yes, the nation will be in trade deficit. Official numbers will be out on Wednesday April 20th. (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Apr 16, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110415D15JFA10.htm => Overall foreign departures from Japan We reported several weeks ago that around 190,000 non-Japanese left Narita between March 11 and 22, compared with a normal number of around 22,000. Now the Justice Ministry is supplying more numbers. Officially, 531,000 foreigners left Japan in the 4-week period March 12 through April 8. Of course some of these were tourists and about 302,000 people had re-entry permits and so are more likely to represent temporary departees. At the same time, 302,000 foreigners entered Japan, which appears to be about 30% less than normal, but in fact would have been even lower if not for the arrival (we believe) of many people to help with the relief efforts. (Source: TT commentary from mainichi.jp, Apr 16, 2011) http://mdn.mainichi.jp/mdnnews/news/20110416p2g00m0dm017000c.html => Tokyo tourism plunges Confirming the fact that tourists are avoiding Tokyo, a Nikkei survey of major Tokyo hotels found that the average occupancy rate during March was just 49.8%, and for the higher-end hotels such as the New Otani, the occupancy rate was just 28.7%. Normally the occupancy at this time of year, cherry blossom season after all, would be in the high 80's or above. (Source: TT commentary from nikkei.com, Apr 16, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110416D16EE269.htm => Australia to supply some temporary housing The Japanese embassy has asked Australian building firms to help in supplying some of the 30,000 temporary housing units that Japan will build over the next few months. Already building merchants, Carter Holt Harvey, and remote-site prefab builder Nomad Housing have said that they will offer flat-pack timber-frame homes to Japan. Apparently Japan will pay around JPY4.4m for a 30sq m home expected to house two families... ***Ed: Whoa! That's pretty darned small!** (Source: TT commentary from theaustralian.com.au, Apr 16, 2011) http://bit.ly/gJ4BDZ => Solar-powered water purification units No word on whether this is just a goodwill gesture or not, but US company WorldWater & Solar Technologies has tied up with Spain's Gamesa Corporaci?n Tecnol?gica to ship two solar-powered water purification systems to be installed in several towns near in Fukushima. The units screen radiation and other pollutants and provide up to 110,000 liters of fresh potable water daily. Each unit has its own 3.3kW solar cell array and thus needs no external power. (Source: TT commentary from solarserver.com, Apr 16, 2011) http://bit.ly/f91ZjK NOTE: Broken links Many online news sources remove their articles after just a few days of posting them, thus breaking our links -- we apologize for the inconvenience. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** -------- Essential Business Reference in English ---------- If you're a manager or director of a company in Japan, you need these references with detailed explanations in English!!! - Japan Staff Employment Law Guide - 1st Edition Published June, 2010 (JPY 21,000) - Japan Master Tax Guide 2010/11 Published July, 2010 (JPY 18,375) - Japan Corporation Law Guide - 2nd Edition Published November, 2010 (JPY 22,050) *Above prices include tax * As a limited offer for TT readers: 1 title, 5% discount, more than 2 titles, 10% discount. For more details: support at cch.co.jp, call 03-6234-3980. Web: https://www.cch-japan.jp/contents/register/form www.cch-japan.jp ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ CANDIDATE ROUND UP/VACANCIES => BiOS, a Division of the LINC Media group, is actively marketing the following positions for customers setting up or expanding in Japan, as well as other employers of bilinguals. ** HIGHLIGHTED POSITION BiOS is now urgently looking for On-site IT Support Engineer with experience supporting our client?s internal IT infrastructure at their office in the Shinagawa area. The candidate will be responsible for providing level-2 desktop support to 200 end-users in both English and Japanese, as well as setting up, installing, and configuring in-house hardware (network, server, printer, VoIP equipment, etc.). You will also be responsible for coordinating with the company?s internal helpdesk and IT headquarters team to provide smooth trouble ticket handling. Due to the technical nature and demanding work environment, this position is suitable for someone with solid experience supporting overall in-house IT infrastructure including desktop support, and who has strong knowledge of network (CCNA level preferred) and server administration. In addition, since this role requires coordination between many different departments (internal IT team, IT team from headquarters, vendors, etc.), fluent communications skill in both English and Japanese is required. Remuneration is JPY5m ? JPY6.5m depending on your experience and skill level. ** POSITIONS VACANT - Account Manager, global IT co, JPY7m ? JPY11m - Junior Helpdesk Engineer, BiOS, JPY3m ? JPY4m - Procurement Officer, global bank, JPY3.5m ? JPY4.5m - Senior Network Engineer, global IT co, JPY8m ? JPY11m - Bilingual Administrator, BiOS, JPY2.5m ? JPY3m Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: kenji.sakota at biosjp.com ** BiOS Job Mail Every 2 weeks BiOS sends out a regular communication to its job seeking candidates, called BiOS Job Mail. Every edition carries a list of BiOS's current and most up-to-date vacancies, with each entry featuring a short job description and a direct link to the main entry on the BiOS home page. Regardless of whether you are unemployed and searching, thinking about a career change, or just curious to know if there is something out there that might suit you better, the BiOS Job Mail newsletter is an easy and convenient way for you to stay informed. If you would like to register for the BiOS Job Mail, or to find out more, please email kenji.sakota at biosjp.com. Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: kenji.sakota at biosjp.com. ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ UPCOMING EVENTS/ANNOUNCEMENTS ------------- Entrepreneur Seminar in Tokyo --------------- Start a Company in Japan Entrepreneur's Handbook Seminar 23rd of April, 2011 If you have been considering setting up your own company, find out what it takes to make it successful. Terrie Lloyd, founder of over 13 start-up companies in Japan, will be giving an English-language seminar and Q and A on starting up a company in Japan. Over 450 people have taken this course so far. This is an ideal opportunity to find out what is involved, and to ask specific questions that are not normally answered in business books. All materials are in English and are Japan-focused. For more details: http://www.japaninc.com/entrepreneur_handbook_seminar ----------------------------------------------------------- ------------------ ICA Event - April 21 ------------------- Speaker: Marc Einstein, Industry Manager - Frost & Sullivan Title: APAC Mobile & Wireless Outlook in 2011 Details: Complete event details at http://www.icajapan.jp/ (RSVP Required) Date: Thursday, April 21, 2011 Time: 6:30 Doors open, Buffet Dinner included and cash bar Cost: 4,000 yen (members), 6,000 yen (non-members) Open to all. Venue is The Foreign Correspondents' Club of Japan http://www.fccj.or.jp/aboutus/map ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CORRECTIONS/FEEDBACK In this section we run comments and corrections submitted by readers. We encourage you to spot our mistakes and amplify our points, by email, to editors at terrie.com. *** In TT608 we speculated on a power hit being the reason that Toshiba will see its NAND RAM output drop up to 20% over the next few months, but as several readers kindly pointed out the Yokkaichi plant is separated from the disaster area electrically. We agree that this was a point of dot-joining by us, and in fact the more likely reason for the drop in Toshiba output will be its Iwate packaging plant being severely damaged... http://bit.ly/gEyZwU => Reader: Just to alert you to a possible error in your latest Take. You said, "Although the Toshiba plant is in Yokkaichi, hundreds of kilometers to the south of the earthquake zone, the momentary power outage when Fukushima Daiichi went off line damaged sensitive equipment and Toshiba is saying that production will be affected for some time." But in fact, as you will see from the following: http://bit.ly/125JiM, given that Fukushima is in the 50hz zone and Yokkaichi is in the 60hz zone, a disruption in power supply in one zone should not affect the supply in the other. While small volumes of electricity can be shunted from one zone to the other, it has to be converted and the conversion process itself should buffer any fluctuations in supply. Therefore it is very unlikely that a power surge or outage in the eastern zone would have caused a surge/outage in the western zone... but then again I am not an electrical engineer! The irony is that the conversion capacity of the bridging circuits between the two systems is quite low, hence the challenge for eastern Japan in summer as not enough power can be drawn or diverted from the west to compensate for the loss in generation capacity in the east. *********************************************************** END SUBSCRIBERS: 8,820 members as of April 17, 2011 (We purge our list regularly.) +++ ABOUT US STAFF Written by: Terrie Lloyd (terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com) HELP: E-mail Terrie-request at mailman.japaninc.com with the word 'help' in the subject or body (don't include the quotes), and you will get back a message with instructions. FEEDBACK Send letters (Feedback, Inquiries & Information) to the editor to terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com. ADVERTISING INFORMATION For more information on advertising in this newsletter, Contact ads at japaninc.com. SUBSCRIBE Get Terrie's Take by giving your name and email address at http://www.japaninc.com/newsletters/free_sign_up, or go straight to Mailman at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ Copyright 2011 Japan Inc. Communications Inc. ----------------- Japan Inc opens up Japan ---------------- J at pan Inc is Japan's only independently published English- language business website. Authoritatively chronicling online the business trends in Japan, each posting brings you in-depth analysis of business, people and technology in the world's second largest economy. Visit www.japaninc.com for the best business insight on Japan available. ----------------------------------------------------------- -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From terrie at mailman.japaninc.com Mon Apr 25 01:17:42 2011 From: terrie at mailman.japaninc.com (Terrie's Take) Date: Mon, 25 Apr 2011 01:17:42 +0900 Subject: Terrie's Take 611 -- Gillard Sends Right Message at Minami Sanriku, e-biz news from Japan Message-ID: * * * * * * * * * T E R R I E 'S T A K E * * * * * * * A weekly roundup of news & information from Terrie Lloyd. (http://www.terrie.com) General Edition Sunday, April 24 2011, Issue No. 611 +++ INDEX - What's New -- Gillard Sends Right Message by Visiting Minami Sanriku - News -- Cheap Hotel Rooms in Tokyo - Candidate Roundup/Vacancies - Upcoming Events - Corrections/Feedback -- Small Temporary Dwellings for Tohoku - News Credits SUBSCRIBE to, UNSUBSCRIBE from Terrie's Take at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take, or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ ------------ PBXL IP TELEPHONY AND CLOUD BCP -------------- Since PBXL started in 2006, we have consistently focused on providing high quality, cloud based telephony services. Designed around a high-availability, data center based deployment, we are proud to report that our customers were able to both make and receive calls during the earthquake and ensuing challenges. Additionally, due to PBXL?s flexible system design, PBXL was able to continue providing call center services and other enterprise connectivity to both offices and remote workers. With summer coming, and with it likely power shortages, PBXL?s remote access and office solutions enable a mobile workforce to continue to service customers regardless of location, without requiring a phone number change for many Tokyo and Yokohama offices. Call us at 03-4550-2557, e-mail us at bcp at pbxl.jp or for more information on Tokyo and Yokohama power-safe telephony visit us at http://en.pbxl.jp/bcp.php ------------ PBXL is BUSINESS COMMUNICATIONS -------------- +++ WHAT'S NEW This last week the Prime Minister of Australia, Julia Gillard, paid a visit to Japan and to the tsunami devastated town of Minami Sanriku. In paying the visit, Gillard became the first foreign leader to venture to the disaster area, a point that won't be missed by the Japanese in terms of their relationship with Australia. In fact, the entire visit of Gillard to Japan was both thoughtful and inspired. Thoughtful in that the purpose of the trip was primarily to show goodwill and support for Japan in these difficult times, rather than to push trade or a special agenda. Such an action by a world leader will not be forgotten quickly by the Japanese, where what you do and how you do it make all the difference. We were at a charity dinner held in Tokyo on Friday night, and Gillard was the guest of honor. She took the dais to give a heartfelt speech about the tragedy and how Australia was ready to do whatever was necessary to help. Her presentation was heard by diet members and other Japanese dignitaries, in both English and Japanese, and her message would not have been missed. The visit was inspired, because despite lingering fears about radiation and aftershocks, the team at the Australian Embassy was able to convey the importance of such a trip at this particular time -- while it is still fresh in the mind of the public. It is to Gillard's credit that she decided to take the risk, however small we might think it is living here in Tokyo, to make the trip. Fortunately her four days here passed without event. [Continued below...] --------- Tokyo's Fastest Growing Restaurant Guide -------- www.metrodining.jp If you like eating out and want to explore a little, or help others to do so, then you need to try out the latest Metropolis Magazine food application, Metrodining.jp. The result of 2 years of development, the database already has 600+ foreigner-friendly restaurants, and is adding 100+ a week to the list. First in town to offer user rankings and cell phone additions/comments. Watch the site closely, because in the next few weeks we will offer rewards for people adding more comments and establishments. If you own or have an interest in a restaurant, registering your operation is free of charge. For ad and other enquiries, contact: commercial at metropolis.co.jp ------------------------------------------------------------ [...Article continues] Gillard was transported by bus to the ruins of Minami Sanriku. We're sure that whatever she was briefed on at the embassy in Tokyo, where everything is still oh-so-normal, would not have prepared her for the overwhelming devastation confronting her when she stepped off the bus. Some of the press photos of her standing amidst the wreckage show the shock on her face, and the realization of just how bad the tsunami was. As a reminder, here is a video we've not seen before, showing the 10 minutes that changed forever the lives of the residents of this small rustic fishing town. Scroll about half way down the page, past the photos and Japanese text, and you'll see the video. http://pop-rin.seesaa.net/article/194917311.html Accompanied by Japan's foreign minister Takeaki Matsumoto, Gillard met Jin Sato, the Mayor of Minami Sanriku, who has an amazing tale of survival to tell himself. He was in the town's disaster management center when it was engulfed by the tsunami. He and about 30 others made it to the roof of the building, and as the flood waters rose they washed away 20 or so colleagues, but Sato and 10 others somehow managed to hang on to rooftop antennas and other fittings. Just a day later, despite his terrifying ordeal, Sato was back at work coordinating the relief effort to what was left of his town. Apparently Gillard embraced him after hearing what he'd been through, trying to offer some comfort. While it is easy to dismiss Gillard's visit as being opportunistic, in fact, the act of her visiting Minami Sanriku and paying her respects fills a strong need by Japanese for ceremony and personal commitment. Her visit tells all of Japan that Australia is an ally it can depend on right up to the very top. As a result, her visit was widely documented and praised in Japanese newspapers around the country. Of course, other nations have also shown their friendship and commitment, by sending rescue teams, aid, donations, and in the case of the USA, much needed logistical support for relief operations and technical support to deal with the nuclear crisis at Fukushima. The Japanese foreign ministry is no doubt keeping tabs of such demonstrations of support. But while the bureaucrats may know just how much cash and kind has come from whom and when, it takes the visit by a national figure to really cement the message of friendship and support to the citizens of a nation still in shock. And Australia's Julia Gillard was able to achieve this with her well-timed trip. *************** For those of you living outside Japan, we can tell you that Tokyo is getting back normal. People are starting to return to bars and restaurants, trains are starting to run normally again, and even the foreign families are returning. We heard that international schools are back to around 80% of pre-earthquake enrollment. Bottled water is available again, as is toilet paper and natto. Yoghurt, non-standard breads, and other specialty perishable products are slowing reappearing as well. There is still an air of consumer restraint, especially in terms of big-ticket spending such as travel, hotel stays, and department store shopping. But our take is that with daily life returning to normal, other spending will not be far behind. The irony is that with the return of normality, there is a danger of people forgetting that there is an ocean of need still continuing in Tohoku and the eastern sea coast. So far the bulk of attention has been on the Red Cross, however, smaller aid organizations are also busy providing supplies and assistance as well. One of these is JHELP, run by Ken Joseph. Ken and his team have emailed us asking that we let readers know that they still need volunteers to help with the clean up in Sendai, Ishinomaki, Fukushima, Kesenuma and other areas of Tohoku. Even 1-2 days would be sufficient to be useful. Ken's team also needs: used laptop computers, small Japanese Kei cars, new mens and womens underwear, towels, canned and instant food, and internet access devices. Donations can be made at www.jhelp.com or by Postal Furikae 00160 7 162438, Nihon Kinkyu Enjotai. Those able to assist are asked to contact team at jhelp.com. Oh, and speaking of volunteers, don't forget the RDTN.org folks who are looking for drivers to start their radiation monitoring service in Fukushima. Contact them at: Info at RDTN.org. ...The information janitors/ ***------------------------****-------------------------*** --------- BIOS - Bilingual IT Systems and Support --------- BiOS full-service IT solutions has a new service. Working with our fully licenced temporary dispatch group, we are now able to provide Japan in-country workers for companies not yet registered in Japan. This innovative service is available for companies needing to hire staff for Japanese customers, but who are unable to commit to the expense and infrastructure of maintaining an office in Japan. We take care of all aspects of the employment, contracting, and dispatch -- including management of the employee. Also, if you're thinking of Cloud office solutions, take a look at Microsoft's new Business Productivity Online Standard Suite. Terrie mentions Exchange Online in TT602, and we can do the implementations for you. For more information on this and other SI and IT services, in English or Japanese: Phone: (03) 4588-2220, Email: solutions at biosjp.com Web: www.biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ NEWS - Hotel rooms going cheap - Demand for rice bread growing - Cross-border fund for Japan/USA - Gree goes all out to secure gaming platform - iPhone game donates Tohoku relief funds -> Hotel rooms going cheap No thanks to the huge drop off of tourists and domestic travelers since the Tohoku earthquake, major hotels in Tokyo are offering amazingly cheap rooms to drum up business. Prince Hotels is offering a two-person room at the Takanawa Prince for just JPY6,500/night, about 80% off the rack rate. Fujita Kanko, the owner of the Washington hotel chain, is offering 7 nights at the Shinjuku Washington Hotel for just JPY4,500/night. The Nikkei reckons that average hotel occupancy rates in Tokyo were under 50% for March, the lowest in the last 20 years. (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Apr 22, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110421D21JFA18.htm -> Demand for rice bread growing A subsidiary of Nippon Ham, Tohoku Nippon Meat Packers, has said that it is stepping up the production of frozen rice bread, after the product range has proved a hit around the country. The company says it will double production, still at modest levels with just 6 tons of rice harvested for bread flour in 2010, but that it expects demand to rise quickly as more parents start to realize their kids have gluten intolerance. ***Ed: Indeed, one of our kids suffers from gluten intolerance and rice bread has been a great replacement. Just wish they'd stop putting sweetener in the product, though.** (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Apr 22, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110421D21JSN04.htm -> Cross-border fund for Japan/USA Venture Capital investment is seldom conducted cross border, because VC firms like to know their investees and to have a feeling of control of their activities -- hard to do when you're 5,000 miles away and speaking a different language. However, Draper Fisher Jurvetson and JAIC America have put the finishing touches on a $25m fund (eventually to become a US$50m fund) that will do cross-border investment in both countries. The fund will invest in consumer technology, enterprise software, mobile technology and advanced materials. (Source: TT commentary from wsj.com, Apr 21, 2011) http://on.wsj.com/gwUEWM -> Gree goes all out to secure gaming platform US$104m in just 3 years, that's the earn-out that investors in OpenFeint and its CEO made this week, when mobile games company Gree agreed to buy out OpenFeint. Gree was of course after the rest of the highly successful gaming platform that it doesn't already own. OpenFeint is apparently the base for 19,000 game developers serving around 75m users globally with over 5,000 separate games, making it the biggest gaming platform of its type. (Source: TT commentary from Gree PR, Apr 21, 2011) http://bit.ly/dLfSI1 -> iPhone game donates Tohoku relief funds US-based Cats from Japan, founded by the founder of Metropolis magazine, Mark Devlin, has released an iphone game, named Sweepr, and will donate some of its subscribers' revenues to the Tohoku relief efforts. Sweepr is a simple but highly addictive arcade-style game that sells for 99 cents. You can get it at the iPhone App Store. (Source: TT commentary from email from CfJ, Apr 24, 2011) NOTE: Broken links Many online news sources remove their articles after just a few days of posting them, thus breaking our links -- we apologize for the inconvenience. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** -------- Essential Business Reference in English ---------- If you're a manager or director of a company in Japan, you need these references with detailed explanations in English!!! - Japan Staff Employment Law Guide - 1st Edition Published June, 2010 (JPY 21,000) - Japan Master Tax Guide 2010/11 Published July, 2010 (JPY 18,375) - Japan Corporation Law Guide - 2nd Edition Published November, 2010 (JPY 22,050) *Above prices include tax * As a limited offer for TT readers: 1 title, 5% discount, more than 2 titles, 10% discount. For more details: support at cch.co.jp, call 03-6234-3980. Web: https://www.cch-japan.jp/contents/register/form www.cch-japan.jp ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ CANDIDATE ROUND UP/VACANCIES => BiOS, a Division of the LINC Media group, is actively marketing the following positions for customers setting up or expanding in Japan, as well as other employers of bilinguals. ** HIGHLIGHTED POSITION BiOS is now urgently looking for Oracle Database Administrator with experience supporting our client?s internal Oracle Database and data warehouse at their office in the Daito-ku area. The candidate will be responsible for managing activities of the client's database (mainly Oracle) operations, as well as designing, implementing, and providing technical solutions using Oracle. You will also be responsible for monitoring, setting, and configuring internal UNIX and Windows server operations. Due to the technical nature and demanding work environment, this position is suitable for someone with solid experience as an Oracle DBA and UNIX/Windows Systems Administrator, and who has strong technical knowledge of high availability databases. In addition, since this role requires coordination with engineers and internal staff, fluent English and Japanese is required. Remuneration is JPY5.5m ? JPY7m depending on your experience and skill level. ** POSITIONS VACANT - IMAC Engineer, global ibank, JPY3m ? JPY4m - Technical Data Center Manager, BiOS, JPY5m - JPY6.5m - Senior Network Engineer, global IT co, JPY8m ? JPY11m - Account Manager (IT Outsourcing), BiOS, JPY3.5m - JPY4m - SCCM Specialist, global IT co, JPY9m - JPY13m Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: kenji.sakota at biosjp.com ** BiOS Job Mail Every 2 weeks BiOS sends out a regular communication to its job seeking candidates, called BiOS Job Mail. Every edition carries a list of BiOS's current and most up-to-date vacancies, with each entry featuring a short job description and a direct link to the main entry on the BiOS home page. Regardless of whether you are unemployed and searching, thinking about a career change, or just curious to know if there is something out there that might suit you better, the BiOS Job Mail newsletter is an easy and convenient way for you to stay informed. If you would like to register for the BiOS Job Mail, or to find out more, please email kenji.sakota at biosjp.com. Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: kenji.sakota at biosjp.com. ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ UPCOMING EVENTS/ANNOUNCEMENTS No events for this coming week. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CORRECTIONS/FEEDBACK In this section we run comments and corrections submitted by readers. We encourage you to spot our mistakes and amplify our points, by email, to editors at terrie.com. *** In TT610 we commented that as part of the relief effort for Tohoku, Japan will pay around JPY4.4m for companies able to supply a 30sq m home expected to house two families. That seemed a pretty small space to us. => Reader: It is indeed small for a long-term living space for two families, but not unbearably so by Japanese urban standards. I've been living in "Japanese style" for a decade or so now in a 25 sq. m one-room apartment, and it's far from uncomfortable; it hardly even qualifies as "cozy." This is large for a one-room; many of my friends live long-term in a room hardly more than half the size (15 sq. m or so). This does require some adjustments in living style that Westerners might find uncomfortable. I sleep on a futon which can be folded up and put out of the way during the day; my main table is a low one that moves from a corner to the center of the room; I mostly sit on the floor (on zabuton cushions) instead of on chairs; when I work at home I use my laptop on a small folding desk and chair; and perhaps the worst hardship to some, I own a lot less stuff than I ever did in North America. There are corresponding advantages, too. I have the comfort of knowing that my environmental impact (especially in terms of power usage for heating and cooling, and less so, lighting) is quite low; I'm a lot more eco-friendly than most of even the more fanatic environmentalists I know back in Canada. (With the shortage of electrical power these days, this is even more important than just stewardship of the Earth.) And the money I save by having a small apartment and no car is available to be spent on entertainment outside of my house, which is not only convenient but helps to keep others employed. So while 30 sq. m for a couple of married couples and a couple of kids is somewhat cramped even by Japanese standards, it's still an amount of space that would be quite normal for two single people, and it's not as much of a hardship as many Westerners might think, even if they are likely to live there for several years. Speaking of environmental impact and power usage, thanks for the reminder about LED light bulbs. That reminded me that my most-used light source, a 100 W bulb in the corner of my room, wants replacing with a low-power LED model. *********************************************************** END SUBSCRIBERS: 8,820 members as of April 24, 2011 (We purge our list regularly.) +++ ABOUT US STAFF Written by: Terrie Lloyd (terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com) HELP: E-mail Terrie-request at mailman.japaninc.com with the word 'help' in the subject or body (don't include the quotes), and you will get back a message with instructions. FEEDBACK Send letters (Feedback, Inquiries & Information) to the editor to terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com. ADVERTISING INFORMATION For more information on advertising in this newsletter, Contact ads at japaninc.com. SUBSCRIBE Get Terrie's Take by giving your name and email address at http://www.japaninc.com/newsletters/free_sign_up, or go straight to Mailman at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ Copyright 2011 Japan Inc. Communications Inc. ----------------- Japan Inc opens up Japan ---------------- J at pan Inc is Japan's only independently published English- language business website. Authoritatively chronicling online the business trends in Japan, each posting brings you in-depth analysis of business, people and technology in the world's second largest economy. Visit www.japaninc.com for the best business insight on Japan available. ----------------------------------------------------------- -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From terrie at mailman.japaninc.com Mon May 2 00:51:35 2011 From: terrie at mailman.japaninc.com (Terrie's Take) Date: Mon, 2 May 2011 00:51:35 +0900 Subject: Terrie's Take 612 -- Citizens' Radiation Monitoring Network, e-biz news from Japan Message-ID: * * * * * * * * * T E R R I E 'S T A K E * * * * * * * A weekly roundup of news & information from Terrie Lloyd. (http://www.terrie.com) General Edition Sunday, May 01, 2011, Issue No. 612 +++ INDEX - What's New -- Citizens' Radiation Monitoring Network - News -- Tough times if you like Natto - Candidate Roundup/Vacancies - Upcoming Events - Corrections/Feedback -- international school student numbers vs. Japanese school numbers - News Credits SUBSCRIBE to, UNSUBSCRIBE from Terrie's Take at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take, or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ ------------ PBXL IP TELEPHONY AND CLOUD BCP -------------- Since PBXL started in 2006, we have consistently focused on providing high quality, cloud based telephony services. Designed around a high-availability, data center based deployment, we are proud to report that our customers were able to both make and receive calls during the earthquake and ensuing challenges. Additionally, due to PBXL?s flexible system design, PBXL was able to continue providing call center services and other enterprise connectivity to both offices and remote workers. With summer coming, and with it likely power shortages, PBXL?s remote access and office solutions enable a mobile workforce to continue to service customers regardless of location, without requiring a phone number change for many Tokyo and Yokohama offices. Call us at 03-4550-2557, e-mail us at bcp at pbxl.jp or for more information on Tokyo and Yokohama power-safe telephony visit us at http://en.pbxl.jp/bcp.php ------------ PBXL is BUSINESS COMMUNICATIONS -------------- +++ WHAT'S NEW In Terrie's Take 610 two weeks ago, we mentioned the emergence of a citizen's mobile radiation monitoring group called RDTN.org. We appealed for drivers and others to help them map radiation levels around the Daiichi Power Plant disaster area to the north of Tokyo -- well, those areas which are still legally accessible anyway. With the advent of the Internet, it's amazing how quickly a new idea catches on, and at the moment the RDTN group, now renamed as SafeCast and with a website at www.safecast.org, are on the verge of fame for several reasons: both of which are really interesting. First, the SafeCast team, made up of folks both in Tokyo and in the USA, put together a project on a venture funding website we'd not heard of before, called Kickstarter (www.kickstarter.com). There isn't anything like Kickstarter in Japan, although there should be. Essentially it is for very early stage start-up promoters to raise their first round of cash. Donors ("Investors"?) don't get shares, a process that would quickly bog down both the donors and recipients in paperwork and processes. Instead, the idea promoters provide incentives to the donors as an alternative to shares. You can see the RDTN.org/SafeCast project at: http://kck.st/eMi2hN Of course with a model like this, you can't normally expect donations of more than US$20-US$100 per person, but given the popularity of the site, some of the projects are getting more than one thousand people putting cash in. Indeed, with little more than a Fukushima-bound mission and a prototype home-built Geiger counter/mapping system (nicknamed the "iGeigie" because it uses an iPhone for uploads), the SafeCast team have been able to raise a surprising US$34,000 from 576 donors (as of Sunday night) in just 2 weeks. They still have 6 days to go, and are hoping to bring in more, so that they can increase the number of iGeigie's that they will have out in the hands of citizen monitors. [Continued below...] --------- Tokyo's Fastest Growing Restaurant Guide -------- www.metrodining.jp If you like eating out and want to explore a little, or help others to do so, then you need to try out the latest Metropolis Magazine food application, Metrodining.jp. The result of 2 years of development, the database already has 600+ foreigner-friendly restaurants, and is adding 100+ a week to the list. First in town to offer user rankings and cell phone additions/comments. Watch the site closely, because in the next few weeks we will offer rewards for people adding more comments and establishments. If you own or have an interest in a restaurant, registering your operation is free of charge. For ad and other enquiries, contact: commercial at metropolis.co.jp ------------------------------------------------------------ [...Article continues] The second major point of interest about SafeCast is what they have found. As we all know, the government has been touting the fact that apart from a tense couple of weeks shortly after the quake, the air around but outside the 20km exclusion zone from the Fukushima Daiichi power plant has been relatively low in radiation and that people should not be concerned. As of the end of April, the Ministry of Science, MEXT, started making radiation monitoring data publicly available, and most of the monitoring points more than 40km away (West of the power plant) are showing levels of under 2-3 microSieverts (uSv) per hour. For sure, there are a couple of locations that are a lot higher, at around 20uSv/hr, but these are exceptions. Well, SafeCast's first venture into the Fukushima area several weeks ago confirmed that air levels are indeed low, with the highest readings on their route being around Koriyama, about 60km from the Daiichi plant and measuring around 1uSv/hr~2uSv/hr. But the problem is that radiation does not just exist in the air. Instead, radioactive particles tend to stick to the ground and persist, particularly on hard surfaces. And this is exactly what the SafeCast folks found. It seems that the government doesn't seem to be particularly aware of the threat of ground-based hot spots. The following is a note we received from SafeCast a couple of days ago: "It was on our first trip to Koriyama that we measured a hotspot on a playground at a kindergarten in excess of 50 ?Sv/hr. On that trip we documented numerous elevated readings in the 20-30 ?Sv/hr range but 50 ?Sv/hr definitely made us take note. For reference the levels we?ve been detecting in Tokyo rarely go above 1 ?Sv/hr right now. As none of us are medical professionals or radiation scientists we don?t want to make any claims about what is safe or what isn?t safe, simply that a level more than 50X higher than normal in a playground where children are playing is probably something worth noting." More about that first trip can be found here, scroll down to see the video of the high reading. The background crackling noise you can hear is the Geiger counter: http://blog.safecast.org/2011/04/24/first-safecast/ To put the kindergarten reading into perspective, pre-earthquake nuclear workers had an exposure limit of 100 mSv/yr and the dose limit for normal person is 1 mSv/yr. 50?Sv/hr is equivalent to annual dosage of 438 mSv (although the kids at the kindergarten would not be in proximity the whole time), which is more than four times the pre-March 11 limit for nuclear workers. Given that kids, and especially toddlers who would be both in close proximity to hard surfaces in a kindergarten and whose growing bodies are more susceptible to the effects of radiation, this finding is quite disturbing. Perhaps it is no coincidence, then, that in the last couple of days, a senior science adviser to the government resigned after a spat over radiation safety limits for schools in Fukushima. The adviser, Todai Professor Toshiso Kosako, argued that the government's radiation safety standards for elementary schools are inappropriate. The government spokesperson, Yukio Edano responded by saying the safety standard doesn't mean children in the area will face an annual radiation level of 20 millisieverts, just that this will be the limit. Well, if only the kids were getting just 20mSv...! However, as SafeCast is demonstrating, if they are out in a playground with a hot spot for 2-3 hours a day, they could be getting double or triple this limit. As a result, it will be interesting to see the government's reaction once there are more ground measurements being conducted by SafeCast and its growing band of citizen radiation monitors... ***************** In case you are wondering who SafeCast is, here is a self introduction (slightly abridged) that they sent us: "A few days after the 3/11 earthquake and resulting radiation issues with the Fukushima Daiichi reactor a group of web professionals in Portland, Oregon, USA at a company called Uncorked Studios realized that the data that was being released was scattered and obtuse. They decided to create a site that aggregated measurements that were being released by different agencies into one map to try and paint a better picture of what was going on. At the same time, I (Sean Bonner, Los Angeles) was in active discussions with Joi Ito (Chiba & Dubai) and Pieter Franken (Tokyo) about getting Geiger counters into the hands of our friends and families in Japan so they could see exactly what was happening at their houses. We decided to combine our efforts - collecting published radiation readings and combining those with measurements we were taking ourselves with distributed sensor devices. As we looked at the map it became obvious there were some serious holes in the coverage and the project took on a larger scope - not just getting Geiger counters to our friends, but to people all across the country to fill in the gaps and create an open sensor data network that will provide information to anyone who wants it. As this data will be crowd sourced from actual residents and combined with published official feeds, we felt this would be a more reliable set of data than anything coming from a single source. We set out to acquire funds and equipment and were confronted with the fact that supplies of Geiger counters worldwide had been stretched thin and the qualities that we wanted simply didn?t exist." So there you have it. We may be witnessing the birth of a Japan-wide citizen's radiation monitoring network, and the folks over at Uncorked have already voiced a desire to see the network go global. Interesting stuff. *************** Finally, it is Golden Week this coming week, and so we will be taking off one of our four weeks a year. Terrie's Take will be back on Sunday, May 15th. We hope you have a good break. This one was probably well earned, our's certainly has been. :-) ...The information janitors/ ***------------------------****-------------------------*** --------- BIOS - Bilingual IT Systems and Support --------- BiOS full-service IT solutions has a new service. Working with our fully licenced temporary dispatch group, we are now able to provide Japan in-country workers for companies not yet registered in Japan. This innovative service is available for companies needing to hire staff for Japanese customers, but who are unable to commit to the expense and infrastructure of maintaining an office in Japan. We take care of all aspects of the employment, contracting, and dispatch -- including management of the employee. Also, if you're thinking of Cloud office solutions, take a look at Microsoft's new Business Productivity Online Standard Suite. Terrie mentions Exchange Online in TT602, and we can do the implementations for you. For more information on this and other SI and IT services, in English or Japanese: Phone: (03) 4588-2220, Email: solutions at biosjp.com Web: www.biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ NEWS - Why is Natto in short supply? - How much trash in the tsunami zone? - Government workers to get 10% pay cut - Molex fraud creates SEC ripples - March consumer spending falls 8.5% -> Why is Natto in short supply? Whether you love or hate natto, there is no denying that for most Japanese it is a daily staple that is right up there with bread, rice, and fish. But right now natto is still in short supply because of packaging problems. The Nikkei says that one of the leading natto producers, Takano Foods in Ibaraki, would normally produce around 4.3m packs a day, but is currently running at 60% capacity due shortages of polyethylene sealant film and polypropylene packaging film. These would normally be supplied by petrochemicals plants in Kashima, but which have been damaged by the earthquake and tsunami. (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.co.jp, Apr 29, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110428D28JFA08.htm -> How much trash in the tsunami zone? On seeing videos of the massive cleanup going on along the northeast coast, you can't help but wonder where they are going to put all the wrecked cars, homes, and other mountains of trash left after the tsunami. According to The Japan Research Institute, about 16 normal years of trash, or about 100m tons, have been created, which now needs to be sorted and disposed of. The recycling is of course hampered by the volumes of mud and seawater still saturating most of the wreckage. ***Ed: We imagine the recyclers exporting to China are going to be busy -- probably worth some investment in those sorts of firms for the next few months.** (Source: TT commentary from npr.org, Apr 29, 2011) http://n.pr/kvl3HF -> Government workers to get 10% pay cut In a textbook case of Japanese group thinking, the government has almost reached a decision to cut the salaries of all national government workers by 10% -- ranging all the way from diet members down to junior clerks. Apparently the government rationale is that by civil servants taking a hit to help contribute to government financing of the northeastern recovery efforts it will be easier to then sell a rise in consumption tax to the general public, for the same purpose. However, while the move may seem magnanimous, apparently civil servants in the future will be allowed to form unions and engage in separate wage negotiations, so it's not clear what will eventually happen to the cuts. We suspect that they won't last for long. (Source: TT commentary from May 1, 20011) http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/national/T110430003055.htm -> Molex fraud creates SEC ripples We reported last April in TT562 http://www.japaninc.com/tt562_huge-local-fraud-case, that Molex was victim of a massive fraud by a senior manager in its finance group, to the tune of US$175m. The fraud case didn't stop there, given the size and the fact that there appeared to be insufficient corporate processes to prevent such a massive deception. As a result, the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is now launching an investigation into the incident. At the same time, Molex is involved in a court case with Mizuho Bank, over who was responsible for approving the massive loans despite their unusual nature. (Source: TT commentary from reuters.com, Apr 29, 2011) http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/04/29/molex-idUSL3E7FT3IK20110429 -> March consumer spending falls 8.5% Consumer restraint after the March 11 earthquake caused a record drop in national household spending, with month-to-month outlays falling by 8.5% from February to March. Transportation expenditure fell 14.4% and leisure fell 18.7%. At the same time, the average income of households dropped 4.1% to JPY421,975/month. (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Apr 28, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110428D28JF378.htm NOTE: Broken links Many online news sources remove their articles after just a few days of posting them, thus breaking our links -- we apologize for the inconvenience. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** -------- Essential Business Reference in English ---------- If you're a manager or director of a company in Japan, you need these references with detailed explanations in English!!! - Japan Staff Employment Law Guide - 1st Edition Published June, 2010 (JPY 21,000) - Japan Master Tax Guide 2010/11 Published July, 2010 (JPY 18,375) - Japan Corporation Law Guide - 2nd Edition Published November, 2010 (JPY 22,050) *Above prices include tax * As a limited offer for TT readers: 1 title, 5% discount, more than 2 titles, 10% discount. For more details: support at cch.co.jp, call 03-6234-3980. Web: https://www.cch-japan.jp/contents/register/form www.cch-japan.jp ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ CANDIDATE ROUND UP/VACANCIES => BiOS, a Division of the LINC Media group, is actively marketing the following positions for customers setting up or expanding in Japan, as well as other employers of bilinguals. ** HIGHLIGHTED POSITION BiOS is urgently looking for a Web Development Project Manager with experience managing a technical team as well as clients, at our office in the Roppongi area. The candidate will be responsible for managing a web development team (designer, content editor, and developer), as well as planning and managing the development and maintenance of web sites for clients. You will also be responsible for assisting the CEO with account management of clients, taking requests, and handling client requests for development team corrections. Due to the technical nature and demanding work environment, this position is suitable for someone with solid experience managing web design/development teams in both technical and project-related areas, and who has solid experience working directly with the clients in delivering services. In addition, since this role requires coordination with clients directly, fluent communications skills in both English and Japanese are required. Remuneration is JPY4m ? JPY5.5m depending on your experience and skill level. ** POSITIONS VACANT - Desktop Engineer, global bank, JPY4m ? JPY5m - Bilingual Sales Administrator, BiOS, JPY2.5m ? JPY3m - Data Center Engineer, global IT co, JPY3.5m ? JPY4.5m - Account Manager (IT Outsourcing), BiOS, JPY3.5m ? JPY4m - SCCM/SCOM Specialist, global IT co, JPY7m ? JPY8m Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: kenji.sakota at biosjp.com ** BiOS Job Mail Every 2 weeks BiOS sends out a regular communication to its job seeking candidates, called BiOS Job Mail. Every edition carries a list of BiOS's current and most up-to-date vacancies, with each entry featuring a short job description and a direct link to the main entry on the BiOS home page. Regardless of whether you are unemployed and searching, thinking about a career change, or just curious to know if there is something out there that might suit you better, the BiOS Job Mail newsletter is an easy and convenient way for you to stay informed. If you would like to register for the BiOS Job Mail, or to find out more, please email kenji.sakota at biosjp.com. Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: kenji.sakota at biosjp.com. ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ UPCOMING EVENTS/ANNOUNCEMENTS No events for this coming week. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CORRECTIONS/FEEDBACK In this section we run comments and corrections submitted by readers. We encourage you to spot our mistakes and amplify our points, by email, to editors at terrie.com. *** In TT611 we said that life is getting back to normal and that international school rolls were recovering. => Reader: Interesting that international schools are now just back to 80%. Japanese schools in Tsukuba never stopped and never slipped below 90~95 %. The foreign flight ( I still do not understand it) is causing a man made disaster in the community set up to serve it. => We agree. Further checking leads us to think that the number of foreign families who will continue living in Japan will once again drop as the school year ends for around June-July. Whether they will be replaced by new arrivals is difficult to say, especially since Japan is still braced for more aftershocks and Fukushima is still a major risk. *********************************************************** END SUBSCRIBERS: 8,827 members as of May 01, 2011 (We purge our list regularly.) +++ ABOUT US STAFF Written by: Terrie Lloyd (terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com) HELP: E-mail Terrie-request at mailman.japaninc.com with the word 'help' in the subject or body (don't include the quotes), and you will get back a message with instructions. FEEDBACK Send letters (Feedback, Inquiries & Information) to the editor to terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com. ADVERTISING INFORMATION For more information on advertising in this newsletter, Contact ads at japaninc.com. SUBSCRIBE Get Terrie's Take by giving your name and email address at http://www.japaninc.com/newsletters/free_sign_up, or go straight to Mailman at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ Copyright 2011 Japan Inc. Communications Inc. ----------------- Japan Inc opens up Japan ---------------- J at pan Inc is Japan's only independently published English- language business website. Authoritatively chronicling online the business trends in Japan, each posting brings you in-depth analysis of business, people and technology in the world's second largest economy. Visit www.japaninc.com for the best business insight on Japan available. ----------------------------------------------------------- -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From terrie at mailman.japaninc.com Sun May 15 20:29:35 2011 From: terrie at mailman.japaninc.com (Terrie's Take) Date: Sun, 15 May 2011 20:29:35 +0900 Subject: Terrie's Take 613 -- Harvesting Fukushima Worker Stem Cells, e-biz news from Japan Message-ID: * * * * * * * * * T E R R I E 'S T A K E * * * * * * * A weekly roundup of news & information from Terrie Lloyd. (http://www.terrie.com) General Edition Sunday, May 15, 2011, Issue No. 613 +++ INDEX - What's New -- Harvesting Fukushima Worker Stem Cells - News -- People on welfare increase - Candidate Roundup/Vacancies - Upcoming Events - Corrections/Feedback -- Kickstarter.com - News Credits SUBSCRIBE to, UNSUBSCRIBE from Terrie's Take at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take, or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ ------------ PBXL IP TELEPHONY AND CLOUD BCP -------------- Since PBXL started in 2006, we have consistently focused on providing high quality, cloud based telephony services. Designed around a high-availability, data center based deployment, we are proud to report that our customers were able to both make and receive calls during the earthquake and ensuing challenges. Additionally, due to PBXL?s flexible system design, PBXL was able to continue providing call center services and other enterprise connectivity to both offices and remote workers. With summer coming, and with it likely power shortages, PBXL?s remote access and office solutions enable a mobile workforce to continue to service customers regardless of location, without requiring a phone number change for many Tokyo and Yokohama offices. Call us at 03-4550-2557, e-mail us at bcp at pbxl.jp or for more information on Tokyo and Yokohama power-safe telephony visit us at http://en.pbxl.jp/bcp.php ------------ PBXL is BUSINESS COMMUNICATIONS -------------- +++ WHAT'S NEW What value do you put on human lives, particularly if you know ahead of time that you can do something about it? This is a question that was put before the Japanese government at the end of March by a group of hematologists led by Shuichi Taniguchi at the Toranomon Hospital and supported by Professor Masahiro Kami at Tokyo University. The group has named themselves "Save the Fukushima 50" -- in reference to their plan to provide precautionary medical treatment for the employees (originally 50 or so and now over 800) who work at the plant helping to contain the effects of multiple reactor meltdowns. Taniguchi's proposal was that workers at the stricken Fukushima power plant should start a medical treatment program whereby their peripheral blood stem cells are stimulated and harvested so as to be able to treat those workers for radiation poisoning should a second major event strike. Since seismologists expect a second major aftershock of magnitude 8 or more and since this hasn't happened yet, the chances of one happening are still high. For this reason, not counting the selfless risks already taken, Taniguchi and his colleagues think the "Fukushima 50" deserve special consideration. Links for Taniguchi's proposal can be found here: http://bit.ly/fHX3tN (The Lancet) http://www.savefukushima50.org/?p=861&lang=en http://twitter.com/#!/savefukushima50 The question is: do such a large number of people deserve precautionary medical treatment if costly, inconvenient, and possibly unnecessary? In the last couple of weeks, the government has firmly said "no" to the proposal, but we think this is a poor reading of the feelings of the nation, which clearly values the efforts of the Fukushima 50. Perhaps yesterday's announcement of another worker death at the Fukushima plant, although not suspected as being radiation related, will bring this proposal back into focus? [Continued below...] --------- Seeking Partners for Tourist Web Project -------- Metropolis is rapidly establishing a name for itself on the web, extending its paper and brand. The company is now engaged in a new nationwide project serving tourists we believe will start returning to Japan in the second half of 2011. We are seeking business partners, one per prefecture, who are interested in participating in a nationwide consortium. You do not need to be a company, but you do need sales and content development capabilities, and have demonstrated commitment. Metropolis is supplying the software and marketing, so other than your time and effort, no other investment required. Revenue-sharing returns are clear-cut and directly connected to results. To make enquiries, contact: terrie at metropolis.co.jp ------------------------------------------------------------ [...Article continues] The Taniguchi proposal is based on stimulating and harvesting blood stem cells from the bone marrows of Fukushima workers who want (and their families want) to have an "insurance policy" however, small, that they can have treatment options available if they suffer radiation poisoning. What sort of insurance? Well, in the event of exposure to excess radiation, there are three distinguishable levels of effect on the victim. The lowest is either a cumulative or sudden-but-limited poisoning that causes nausea, transient blood cell decrease, and other physical effects, but the extent of which can be contained by short-term hospitalization and treatment with supportive drugs. In contrast, the highest level is the rapid detoriation of the body's whole organs -- and this type of exposure can't readily be resolved with current medical techniques, so the person usually dies. In 1999, two Japanese power plant workers died of organ failure after excess exposure. However, it is the mid-level effects, that occur at up to 4-8 Sieverts of radiation, that the Tokyo hematologists want to address. Specifically radiation exposure which causes the development of infectious diseases, bleeding, and anemia due to damaged bone marrow function. For this level of poisoning and if appropriate, the treatment is bone marrow transplants, a procedure that is already well established for suffers of leukemia. The problem is that finding someone with matching bone marrow or cord blood cells is a really difficult task, and the treatment itself is complicated by rejection of the donated cells, graft-versus-host disease, and the side effects of immunosuppressants. However, by providing a victim with a source of their own blood stem cells, which would have been banked beforehand, you can significantly increase the chance of successful treatment and avoid the problems associated with donor cells. The Save the Fukushima 50 group have told us that the following reasons were given for a thumb's down by the PM's office, the Nuclear Safety Commission and the Science Council. We don't know which reasons are attributable to whom, but we felt most are either pretty weak (e.g., low likelihood of exposure), illogical, or money related. Given that the government did not mind spending billions of yen buying more than 35m doses of Tamiflu, most of which were never used and will likely be disposed of, we wonder why they would worry about money at this stage? Perhaps this is more a case of "It wasn't our idea so we don't want to know about it?" Or perhaps the treatment might drive home to people the risks of working around an unstable source of radiation and thus make it almost impossible to recruit a clean-up crew...? Here are the reasons they were given for the government wanting to do nothing...: * "The Fukushima 50 will not be heavily exposed to radiation because they are always checking the level of radiation." * "Your proposal is not accepted by society nor experts overseas." * "The use of autologous peripheral blood stem cells will be useless if patients are heavily poisoned by radiation." * "Your proposal would only work for certain exposure levels of radiation." * "The risk of people getting sick from the stimulative drug injections is high." * "This will be expensive." [Ed: Indeed, it costs JPY400,000-JPY500,000 per person.] * "Since we don't know who might be heavily exposed to radiation, this will be a waste of time, resources and cost." We agree that there are some valid concerns: the process of mobilizing stem cells to harvest is started with the administration of special drugs and these drugs have some side effects -- leading to one probable reason why the Science Council of Japan has turned down the proposal. However, the standard drug, granulocyte-colony stimulating factor, has already been used for more than 10 years for healthy volunteer donors of bone marrow worldwide including Japan. This standard method takes about four days to complete but can be shortened to two days with the use of another drug not yet approved for use in Japan. This second drug is actively being used in the USA, Europe, and even Korea, and it is only a matter of time before is will be permitted here in Japan. Another concern is cost and efficacy. After the drugs are administered, the recipient's bone marrow starts to produce excess stem cells which are released into the blood stream and these cells are extracted, stored, and banked for future contingencies. The process is not cheap and it means that all of the 800 or so employees at risk would need to take 3-7 days for the treatment at a hospital and to recover. A couple of good links for more on this topic can be found here: http://bit.ly/fkM04K (Guardian) http://bit.ly/hfzTnW (Science Magazine) http://ti.me/hFfHoi (Time) But the Tokyo hematologists say, if a stem cell banking program offers the promise of saving lives if things don't go well, and since the Japanese public would agree the Fukushima 50 deserve preferential treatment, then the procedure should surely be offered to those who want it -- much the same as Tamiflu shots were offered to parents to protect kids and old people against bird flu back in 2004-2008. The mystery is why the government doesn't see it this way and why they don't seem to mind the Fukushima 50 making the ultimate sacrifice? ...The information janitors/ ***------------------------****-------------------------*** --------- BIOS - Bilingual IT Systems and Support --------- BiOS full-service IT solutions has a new service. Working with our fully licenced temporary dispatch group, we are now able to provide Japan in-country workers for companies not yet registered in Japan. This innovative service is available for companies needing to hire staff for Japanese customers, but who are unable to commit to the expense and infrastructure of maintaining an office in Japan. We take care of all aspects of the employment, contracting, and dispatch -- including management of the employee. Also, if you're thinking of Cloud office solutions, take a look at Microsoft's new Business Productivity Online Standard Suite. Terrie mentions Exchange Online in TT602, and we can do the implementations for you. For more information on this and other SI and IT services, in English or Japanese: Phone: (03) 4588-2220, Email: solutions at biosjp.com Web: www.biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ NEWS - Near-record number of people on welfare - PM Kan wants Tepco retirees to bear some of pain - Contrarian retail FX investors bet against Yen - Listed Systems Integration company in trouble? - Realtor income falls amid office rentals decline -> Near-record number of people on welfare According to the Welfare Ministry, there were 1,989,769 people on welfare in February, prior to the earthquake, the highest level in 60 years, when there were 2.04m people on welfare in 1952. Since this number does not include the effects of the Tohoku earthquake, it appears that a new record may be set in April or May this year. ***Ed: And a new underclass appears in Japan...** (Source: TT commentary from japantimes.co.jp, May 13, 2011) http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nn20110513b1.html -> PM Kan wants Tepco retirees to bear some of pain In an "everybody is in this together" moment, Prime Minister Naoto Kan has said that Tokyo Electric Power Co., (TEPCO) should ensure that the burden of losses and compensation are fairly carried by TEPCO employees as well as the public. To that end he is calling for TEPCO to cut pensions and retirement pay significantly as a condition to getting government aid in meeting the flood of compensation claims the utility is facing. Kan's statement echoed an opinion by Your Party representative Kenji Nakanishi, in parliamentary questioning, that since Japan Airlines employees had their pensions cut by 50% and existing retirees by 30% in order for JAL to get a government bail out, then TEPCO employees should get the same treatment. ***Ed: Of course TEPCO doesn't want to do this, but it's hard to see how they can dodge this particular bullet.** (Source: TT commentary from nikkei.com, May 14, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/fr/tnks/Nni20110513D13JFN05.htm -> Contrarian retail FX investors bet against Yen According to a Nikkei article, and contrary to market wisdom of professional traders, it appears that Japan's retail FX investors are betting that the Aussie dollar and Euro will do better against the yen than is otherwise indicated in recent exchange movements. Apparently the Tokyo Financial Exchange's Click 365 market features a significantly higher number of net long positions on foreign currencies versus the yen, currently the highest ratio in the last 2 months. ***Ed: You know what they say about the wisdom of individual investors -- they often turn out to be right!** (Source: TT commentary from nikkei.com, May 14, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110513D13JFA19.htm -> Listed Systems Integration company in trouble? Figures just announced by Japan Third Party (JTP), a mid-sized Tokyo systems integration company specializing in servicing customers of major foreign IT manufacturers, show that the firm has not yet figured out a recovery strategy in the wake of the Lehman Shock. JTP has reported a revenue decrease of 12% to JPY5.22bn, and a consolidated net loss of JPY148m. While this doesn't sound like much, the company seems to be following a downwards trend likely related to its disappearing market of foreign companies. ***Ed: Unless JTP comes up with a replacement strategy pretty quickly, we think this company will be an M&A candidate within the next 12 months.** http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/05/14/idUST1444LNCL20110514 -> Realtor income falls amid office rentals decline Sumitomo Realty, Japan?s third largest real estate developer, has announced that its net earnings fell 3.3% because of the current weak office rental market which has led to their highest vacancy rate of 9% in 6 years. The problem is clearly with businesses pulling back on expansion plans, as Sumitomo still managed to increase its residential sales by 15%. (Source: TT commentary from bloomberg.com, May 12, 2011) http://bloom.bg/iM1jpt NOTE: Broken links Many online news sources remove their articles after just a few days of posting them, thus breaking our links -- we apologize for the inconvenience. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** -------- Essential Business Reference in English ---------- If you're a manager or director of a company in Japan, you need these references with detailed explanations in English!!! - Japan Staff Employment Law Guide - 1st Edition Published June, 2010 (JPY 21,000) - Japan Master Tax Guide 2010/11 Published July, 2010 (JPY 18,375) - Japan Corporation Law Guide - 2nd Edition Published November, 2010 (JPY 22,050) *Above prices include tax * As a limited offer for TT readers: 1 title, 5% discount, more than 2 titles, 10% discount. For more details: support at cch.co.jp, call 03-6234-3980. Web: https://www.cch-japan.jp/contents/register/form www.cch-japan.jp ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ CANDIDATE ROUND UP/VACANCIES => BiOS, a Division of the LINC Media group, is actively marketing the following positions for customers setting up or expanding in Japan, as well as other employers of bilinguals. ** HIGHLIGHTED POSITION BiOS is urgently looking for a Web Development Project Manager with experience managing a technical team as well as clients, at our office in the Roppongi area. The candidate will be responsible for managing a web development team (designer, content editor, and developer), as well as planning and managing the development and maintenance of web sites for clients. You will also be responsible for assisting the CEO with account management of clients, taking requests, and handling client requests for development team corrections. Due to the technical nature and demanding work environment, this position is suitable for someone with solid experience managing web design/development teams in both technical and project-related areas, and who has solid experience working directly with the clients in delivering services. In addition, since this role requires coordination with clients directly, fluent communications skills in both English and Japanese are required. Remuneration is JPY4m ? JPY5.5m depending on your experience and skill level. ** POSITIONS VACANT - Desktop Engineer, global bank, JPY4m ? JPY5m - Bilingual Sales Administrator, BiOS, JPY2.5m ? JPY3m - Data Center Engineer, global IT co, JPY3.5m ? JPY4.5m - Account Manager (IT Outsourcing), BiOS, JPY3.5m ? JPY4m - SCCM/SCOM Specialist, global IT co, JPY7m ? JPY8m Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: kenji.sakota at biosjp.com ** BiOS Job Mail Every 2 weeks BiOS sends out a regular communication to its job seeking candidates, called BiOS Job Mail. Every edition carries a list of BiOS's current and most up-to-date vacancies, with each entry featuring a short job description and a direct link to the main entry on the BiOS home page. Regardless of whether you are unemployed and searching, thinking about a career change, or just curious to know if there is something out there that might suit you better, the BiOS Job Mail newsletter is an easy and convenient way for you to stay informed. If you would like to register for the BiOS Job Mail, or to find out more, please email kenji.sakota at biosjp.com. Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: kenji.sakota at biosjp.com. ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ UPCOMING EVENTS/ANNOUNCEMENTS No events for this coming week. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CORRECTIONS/FEEDBACK In this section we run comments and corrections submitted by readers. We encourage you to spot our mistakes and amplify our points, by email, to editors at terrie.com. *** In TT612 we referenced a website that we called Kickstart.com. Actually it is Kickstarter.com. As soon as we sent it out we started to kick ourselves for mixing it up... ;-) => Reader Comment: Just picked up on the comment of returning to normal people may forget... Actually I reckon it is better to return to normal as quickly as possible, and to get the economy pumping again. Volunteers and donations can only go so far. Major charities and government action is what is really needed because of the scale. I am impressed by how the country has bounced back in some areas but the "mourning" aspect and fear of "what happens next" has probably been a bigger negative effect on survivors than worry about "forgetting". I really think focus on the mid-term recovery is where we ought to be looking as a nation. *********************************************************** END SUBSCRIBERS: 8,831 members as of May 15, 2011 (We purge our list regularly.) +++ ABOUT US STAFF Written by: Terrie Lloyd (terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com) HELP: E-mail Terrie-request at mailman.japaninc.com with the word 'help' in the subject or body (don't include the quotes), and you will get back a message with instructions. FEEDBACK Send letters (Feedback, Inquiries & Information) to the editor to terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com. ADVERTISING INFORMATION For more information on advertising in this newsletter, Contact ads at japaninc.com. SUBSCRIBE Get Terrie's Take by giving your name and email address at http://www.japaninc.com/newsletters/free_sign_up, or go straight to Mailman at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ Copyright 2011 Japan Inc. Communications Inc. ----------------- Japan Inc opens up Japan ---------------- J at pan Inc is Japan's only independently published English- language business website. Authoritatively chronicling online the business trends in Japan, each posting brings you in-depth analysis of business, people and technology in the world's second largest economy. Visit www.japaninc.com for the best business insight on Japan available. ----------------------------------------------------------- -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From terrie at mailman.japaninc.com Mon May 23 09:01:08 2011 From: terrie at mailman.japaninc.com (Terrie's Take) Date: Mon, 23 May 2011 09:01:08 +0900 Subject: Terrie's Take 614 -- Rebuilding Foreigner Population in Japan, e-biz news from Japan Message-ID: * * * * * * * * * T E R R I E 'S T A K E * * * * * * * A weekly roundup of news & information from Terrie Lloyd. (http://www.terrie.com) General Edition Sunday, May 22, 2011, Issue No. 614 +++ INDEX - What's New -- Rebuilding the Foreigner Population in Japan - News -- Horie to do jail time - Candidate Roundup/Vacancies - Upcoming Events -- ICA meeting - Corrections/Feedback - News Credits SUBSCRIBE to, UNSUBSCRIBE from Terrie's Take at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take, or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ ------------ PBXL IP TELEPHONY AND CLOUD BCP -------------- Since PBXL started in 2006, we have consistently focused on providing high quality, cloud based telephony services. Designed around a high-availability, data center based deployment, we are proud to report that our customers were able to both make and receive calls during the earthquake and ensuing challenges. Additionally, due to PBXL?s flexible system design, PBXL was able to continue providing call center services and other enterprise connectivity to both offices and remote workers. With summer coming, and with it likely power shortages, PBXL?s remote access and office solutions enable a mobile workforce to continue to service customers regardless of location, without requiring a phone number change for many Tokyo and Yokohama offices. Call us at 03-4550-2557, e-mail us at bcp at pbxl.jp or for more information on Tokyo and Yokohama power-safe telephony visit us at http://en.pbxl.jp/bcp.php ------------ PBXL is BUSINESS COMMUNICATIONS -------------- +++ WHAT'S NEW For us, one of the most memorable scenes post-earthquake was the long lines of foreigners waiting at Narita airport for the first plane out to "anywhere but here". The near panic created by various embassies, aftershocks, and the worsening reports from the Fukushima nuclear power plant, created a lasting negative impression of conditions in Tokyo for TV viewers around the world. Indeed, after seeing images of the crowds at the airport, calls from friends and family noticeably increased for us personally. As we have reported in earlier Terrie's Takes, the barrage of negative reporting certainly took its toll on the "gaijin" (foreigner) population in Japan, and according to the Justice Ministry overall more than 470,000 foreigners left the country at least temporarily between March 12th and April 1st. The main demographic groups to be noticed as leaving by the Japanese press were foreign expats, students, Chinese workers, and of course tourists. Now here we are two months later and Tokyo is almost back to normal -- there are people back in cafes, shops, and on urban transport, and stores are fully stocked with food and goods that temporarily disappeared in March/April. Up in Fukushima TEPCO workers have entered a number of reactor buildings to start the long, slow process of shutting down the plant and removing the nuclear threat to Tokyo. And yet, apart from the return of the more committed (typically longer-term) foreign residents, there is still a noticeable shortage of foreigners on the streets of Tokyo. As a result, the media is full of dire reports about what this is doing to the inbound tourism industry and farming and factory sectors. Ask any upmarket foreign hotel chain or clothing factory owner employing Chinese laborers (uh, sorry, "trainees") and while they may put on a brave face, things are really, really difficult. [Continued below...] --------- Seeking Partners for Tourist Web Project -------- Metropolis is rapidly establishing a name for itself on the web, extending its paper and brand. The company is now engaged in a new nationwide project serving tourists we believe will start returning to Japan in the second half of 2011. We are seeking business partners, one per prefecture, who are interested in participating in a nationwide consortium. You do not need to be a company, but you do need sales and content development capabilities, and have demonstrated commitment. Metropolis is supplying the software and marketing, so other than your time and effort, no other investment required. Revenue-sharing returns are clear-cut and directly connected to results. To make enquiries, contact: terrie at metropolis.co.jp ------------------------------------------------------------ [...Article continues] So how to get more foreign travelers, students, and foreign labor to come back to Japan? Obviously the biggest hurdle to recovery of inbound foreigners is to fix the Fukushima power plant situation. Unfortunately, the time frame for that to happen ranges from between the "year-end" for cooling systems to be fully reinstated, and 30 years hence, once the reactors are fully decommissioned and entombed in concrete. So we don't think there will be any major tourism recovery at least for another six months. However, things can be helped along by ensuring that as the plant does become safer again, that the world is told about it. A marketing campaign on plant safety is not going to work, because it puts focus back on the risks and would lack credibility. But if the government took a chance on having independent foreign nuclear experts prognosticate on safety levels, and accepted whatever criticisms that might come forth and make good on fixing the problems, then this would provide highly believable information for overseas audiences. It might be ego-deflating for local scientists and the technocratic establishment, but it would have the desired effect. Another approach as nuclear fears recede is to use foreigners who are still in Japan, and therefore who are obviously committed to the place, to tell the message that things are getting back to normal. The government is already doing this, engaging in a program with JTB to recruit more than 1,000 international students to disseminate Twitter, Facebook, and other social media postings about the fact that Japan is safe (see the news item in NEWS below on this). The problem, though, is that there are billions of messages posted on social media every day, and the output of 1,100 people is not going to go far, nor will it be cohesive. Instead, these postings need to be aggregated into a credible third party site (which isn't viewed as government propaganda) with proper search, booking links, and other functionality. In other words, there should be an effort to produce a full-on kuchi-komi site interconnected into the major travel search engines. Another point is to get past the obsession Japan has with Chinese tourists and start working on the many other Asian (and European) populations who might want to come to Japan for its service, food, sightseeing, snow, and other unique experiences. The cash that Chinese tourists are spending has of course been addictive, and so far has been easy to come by, but the fact is that even before the earthquake the wealth levels of Chinese tourists were starting to fall, and tourism authorities have had to dig deeper to keep the numbers going up. Now that Chinese tourists are so averse to the Fukushima situation, this should be a signal to the government that diversity is the key to survival. Next, foreign students. In the last ten years, an overwhelming percentage of foreign students have also come from China. According to the Immigration Bureau, of the nation's approximately 140,000 foreign students, 86,000 of them are from China and since many of them are only-children, a product of the One Child policy, the pressure on them by their parents to stay out of Japan has been great. As a result, out of the 70,000 students left after the earthquake 22,000 have not returned. This is causing significant concern among Japanese universities who have no other real source of students as the country ages. The key here, too, is diversity. If the government wants foreign students, which we agree creates a tremendous amount of future goodwill as well as future foreign residents/workers, then it needs to expand its assistance to universities recruiting elsewhere in Asia. Economic circumstances will ensure a strong flow from most countries, but there needs to be a cohesive and deliberate policy to turn the taps on. As yet, while small steps are being taken, we don't see that happening. Lastly, foreign workers. Um, need we say it again? The country needs diversity. For some reason recruiters are heavily focused on China, but the fact is that wages there are rising rapidly and in 20-30 years time they will also have a worse aging problem than Japan does. Until now, China has provided a cheap source of labor through the intern/trainee program. The Japan Textile Federation says that there are roughly 40,000 foreign trainees in Japan and 99% are from China. Since the earthquake there are plenty of stories in the local press about factory owners complaining how their Chinese workers fled the country and have not come back. Usually the story ends with the owner saying that they will hire local Japanese from now on. Hmmm, good luck to them in finding a skilled machinist for JPY120,000/month. A jobless person in Sendai would make more on the dole. If factories have to continue running in Japan, then recruiters need to head for more promising sources of people. Bangladesh, Indonesia, and possibly Vietnam or Laos come to mind. It will be hard work to source workers to begin with, because the road between Japan and China is so well traveled, but staying ahead of the curve requires continuing innovation and risk taking. This is an ideal time to start forging new relationships and balancing out the nation's foreign population. ...The information janitors/ ***------------------------****-------------------------*** --------- BIOS - Bilingual IT Systems and Support --------- BiOS full-service IT solutions has a new service. Working with our fully licenced temporary dispatch group, we are now able to provide Japan in-country workers for companies not yet registered in Japan. This innovative service is available for companies needing to hire staff for Japanese customers, but who are unable to commit to the expense and infrastructure of maintaining an office in Japan. We take care of all aspects of the employment, contracting, and dispatch -- including management of the employee. Also, if you're thinking of Cloud office solutions, take a look at Microsoft's new Business Productivity Online Standard Suite. Terrie mentions Exchange Online in TT602, and we can do the implementations for you. For more information on this and other SI and IT services, in English or Japanese: Phone: (03) 4588-2220, Email: solutions at biosjp.com Web: www.biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ NEWS - Students to help produce tourist content - Horie to do jail time - New family law legislation floated - Takeda to buy Nycomed - New M&A legislation passes -> Students to help produce tourist content Although it's a good idea, we wonder whether the execution will be sufficient. The Tourism Agency is working with JTB Corporation to send up to 1,100 students to various tourist sites around Japan, and as payment for receiving the trip have to write up their experiences on various international social media. The government is going to target Tohoku, Hakone, and Kyoto. ***Ed: The problem here is in imagining that students can write materials in a way that will attract new tourists and furthermore that the information will actually be found and read. Someone should point out to the Tourism Agency that there are billions of postings on the Internet every day, and 1,100 reports is not going to make much difference unless they are located in an easy-to-find website and are ordered in a way to be useful during a prospective tourist's research. (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, May 20, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110520D20EE249.htm -> Horie to do jail time We suppose that with all the nose thumbing that Horie did with the institution, that it was only a matter of time before the institution bit back. That happened with a vengeance this week when the Supreme Court handed down a sentence of 30 months for Horie's window dressing scandal in 2004. ***Ed: Now, as we have said in the past, there was another more damaging shareholder scandal that took place at roughly the same time, involving one of the Seibu-related Tsutsumi brothers (Yoshiaki), and he only got a suspended sentence. But then he took his lumps at the time and certainly didn't run around making adult movies and making public statements that would incense the judiciary.** (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, May 21, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110521D21JF460.htm -> New family law legislation floated The Japanese government is taking another step closer to signing the Hague Convention and therefore imposing international child custody laws by announcing Friday that the country's family law system would be changed. Still just a plan that needs to be voted into law, the changes call for the Foreign Ministry to get involved in international child custody disputes. The Foreign Ministry would have the power to find abducted children, action child abuse situations, and advising parents on voluntary return of kids to another country. ***Ed: This is the very first step on a long and tortuous path, where we worry that the temptation will be to patch rather than overhaul the family law system and cause more problems than it will fix.**(Source: TT commentary from cnn.com, May 20, 2011) http://edition.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/asiapcf/05/20/japan.child.custody.law/ -> Takeda to buy Nycomed As an acknowledgment by Japan's best and brightest that the domestic economy is headed nowhere but down, pharmaceutical giant Takeda is reportedly shelling out US$9.1bn for Europe-based Nycomed so as to buy new revenue and profits. The purchase price comprises the largest M&A for a Japanese pharma company ever. Takeda is paying about 3.4 times Nycomed's annual sales, less than other comparable M&As of billion-dollar-plus takeovers, but still a rich price, and is counting on the 80m person "smoker's cough" market to build the revenues further. (Source: TT commentary from bloomberg.com, May 19, 2011) http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-05-19/takeda-to-buy-nycomed-for-9-6-billion-euros.html -> New M&A legislation passes M&As just got easier to do in Japan, with the passage of a new revitalization law that allows amongst other things: 1) for acquiring firms to have their screenings by the various government authorities (such as the Fair Trade Commission) to be sped up; 2) for acquisitions to be done in stock rather than just cash; and 3) a new "super majority" level of 90% so that the final 10% can be brought up without having to call a General Shareholders Meeting. (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, May 19, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110518D18JFA08.htm NOTE: Broken links Many online news sources remove their articles after just a few days of posting them, thus breaking our links -- we apologize for the inconvenience. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** -------- Essential Business Reference in English ---------- If you're a manager or director of a company in Japan, you need these references with detailed explanations in English!!! - Japan Staff Employment Law Guide - 1st Edition Published June, 2010 (JPY 21,000) - Japan Master Tax Guide 2010/11 Published July, 2010 (JPY 18,375) - Japan Corporation Law Guide - 2nd Edition Published November, 2010 (JPY 22,050) *Above prices include tax * As a limited offer for TT readers: 1 title, 5% discount, more than 2 titles, 10% discount. For more details: support at cch.co.jp, call 03-6234-3980. Web: https://www.cch-japan.jp/contents/register/form www.cch-japan.jp ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ CANDIDATE ROUND UP/VACANCIES => BiOS, a Division of the LINC Media group, is actively marketing the following positions for customers setting up or expanding in Japan, as well as other employers of bilinguals. ** HIGHLIGHTED POSITION BiOS is urgently looking for a IT Infrastructure Engineer with experience providing level 2 desktop and level 3 (office server/network administration) at our multinational office in Minato-Ku area. The candidate will be responsible for providing both physical (on-site at client) and remote support of office IT infrastructure environment setup, as well as end-user support, office application installation, IT asset management, and any other related tasks when asked by the client. You will also be responsible for frequently coordinating with our account managers, who is directly discussing with the client, to understand client?s needs and demands about our service clearly. Due to the technical nature and demanding work environment, this position is suitable for someone with solid experience providing level 2 (desktop) end-user support with quick response to clients? requests regarding overall office IT environment to end-users who are bilingual in Japanese and English. In addition, since this role requires direct communication with on-site managers as well as our IT managers regards to technical topics, business-level communications skills in English and native-level communications skills in Japanese will be required. Remuneration is JPY4.0m ? JPY5.5m depending on your experience and skill level. ** POSITIONS VACANT - Service Desk Engineer, BiOS, JPY3.5m ? JPY4.5m - Data Center Engineer, global IT co, JPY3.5m ? JPY4.5m - Junior Biz Dev/Account Manager, BiOS, JPY4m ? JPY4.5m - Bilingual Helpdesk Engr, marketing co, JPY3.5m ? JPY4.5m - Move Add Change Engineer, global ibank, JPY4m ? JPY5m Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: kenji.sakota at biosjp.com ** BiOS Job Mail Every 2 weeks BiOS sends out a regular communication to its job seeking candidates, called BiOS Job Mail. Every edition carries a list of BiOS's current and most up-to-date vacancies, with each entry featuring a short job description and a direct link to the main entry on the BiOS home page. Regardless of whether you are unemployed and searching, thinking about a career change, or just curious to know if there is something out there that might suit you better, the BiOS Job Mail newsletter is an easy and convenient way for you to stay informed. If you would like to register for the BiOS Job Mail, or to find out more, please email kenji.sakota at biosjp.com. Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: kenji.sakota at biosjp.com. ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ UPCOMING EVENTS/ANNOUNCEMENTS ------------------ ICA Event - May 26 --------------------- Speaker: Mark Beresford, Program Director - Globalinx Title: 'Kanban' for IT Project Management Details: Complete event details at http://www.icajapan.jp/ (RSVP Required) Date: Thursday, May 26, 2011 Time: 6:30 Doors open, Buffet Dinner included and cash bar Cost: 4,000 yen (members), 6,000 yen (non-members) Open to all. Venue is The Foreign Correspondents' Club of Japan. http://www.fccj.or.jp/aboutus/map ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CORRECTIONS/FEEDBACK In this section we run comments and corrections submitted by readers. We encourage you to spot our mistakes and amplify our points, by email, to editors at terrie.com. *** No feedback or corrections this week. *********************************************************** END SUBSCRIBERS: 8,832 members as of May 22, 2011 (We purge our list regularly.) +++ ABOUT US STAFF Written by: Terrie Lloyd (terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com) HELP: E-mail Terrie-request at mailman.japaninc.com with the word 'help' in the subject or body (don't include the quotes), and you will get back a message with instructions. FEEDBACK Send letters (Feedback, Inquiries & Information) to the editor to terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com. ADVERTISING INFORMATION For more information on advertising in this newsletter, Contact ads at japaninc.com. SUBSCRIBE Get Terrie's Take by giving your name and email address at http://www.japaninc.com/newsletters/free_sign_up, or go straight to Mailman at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ Copyright 2011 Japan Inc. Communications Inc. ----------------- Japan Inc opens up Japan ---------------- J at pan Inc is Japan's only independently published English- language business website. Authoritatively chronicling online the business trends in Japan, each posting brings you in-depth analysis of business, people and technology in the world's second largest economy. Visit www.japaninc.com for the best business insight on Japan available. ----------------------------------------------------------- -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From terrie at mailman.japaninc.com Sun May 29 21:05:42 2011 From: terrie at mailman.japaninc.com (Terrie's Take) Date: Sun, 29 May 2011 21:05:42 +0900 Subject: Terrie's Take 615 -- A Summer of Power-savings and Sweat, e-biz news from Japan Message-ID: * * * * * * * * * T E R R I E 'S T A K E * * * * * * * A weekly roundup of news & information from Terrie Lloyd. (http://www.terrie.com) General Edition Sunday, May 29, 2011, Issue No. 615 +++ INDEX - What's New -- A summer of power-savings and sweat - Metropolis Members Club winners - News -- Joint child custody law passed - Candidate Roundup/Vacancies - Upcoming Events -- ICA meeting - Corrections/Feedback - News Credits SUBSCRIBE to, UNSUBSCRIBE from Terrie's Take at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take, or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ ------------ PBXL IP TELEPHONY AND CLOUD BCP -------------- Since PBXL started in 2006, we have consistently focused on providing high quality, cloud based telephony services. Designed around a high-availability, data center based deployment, we are proud to report that our customers were able to both make and receive calls during the earthquake and ensuing challenges. Additionally, due to PBXL?s flexible system design, PBXL was able to continue providing call center services and other enterprise connectivity to both offices and remote workers. With summer coming, and with it likely power shortages, PBXL?s remote access and office solutions enable a mobile workforce to continue to service customers regardless of location, without requiring a phone number change for many Tokyo and Yokohama offices. Call us at 03-4550-2557, e-mail us at bcp at pbxl.jp or for more information on Tokyo and Yokohama power-safe telephony visit us at http://en.pbxl.jp/bcp.php ------------ PBXL is BUSINESS COMMUNICATIONS -------------- +++ WHAT'S NEW This summer is forecast to be a hot one, and if that's the case then life in the office is going to be miserable -- the threat of power cuts will ensure it is so. Apparently TEPCO now expects to be able to produce about 53.8GW, about 6GW under the peak power draw experienced last summer (July 23rd, 2010). As a consequence, things aren't going to be as bad as we expected six weeks ago, but nonetheless bad enough that air conditioning usage and work practices are going to have to alter substantially for the next 3-4 months. No one really knows just how hard the electricity conservation measures will hit the nation's GDP. Back on March 14th, Nomura Securities speculated that if there was a 10GW shortfall in the TEPCO service area, around a 25% reduction, then the impact on the Japanese economy would be around 0.29%. Given that there is going to be a 5-6GW shortfall, then we can assume the impact will be around half that. Not huge in the big scheme of things, but given that human productivity in an office drops dramatically over 25 degrees, we believe the impact will be larger. We'll have to wait until Q3 to find out. What will the power rationing steps mean for you at your office? The American Chamber of Commerce has demonstrated some good leadership on this issue (as have other Chambers, just we have better access to the ACCJ), and the Chamber executive in conjunction with its Energy & Environment Committee have put together a powerpoint with various tips on how to save power and what the government should be doing. They also arranged a guest appearance by a METI speaker who explained the actual legal and policy steps being implemented. * ACCJ Energy Presentation http://www.accj.or.jp/doclib/file_view/ACCJ_EEC.pdf * METI Presentation http://www.accj.or.jp/doclib/file_view/Meti_PRS.pdf [Continued below...] -------- Remaining Partners for Tourist Web Project ------- Metropolis is rapidly establishing a name for itself on the web, extending its brand and reader base. The company is now engaged in a new nationwide project serving tourists we believe will start returning to Japan in the second half of 2011. So far we have had an outstanding response and have partner candidates for Ishikawa, Fukui, Shiga, Ehime, Okayama, Tochigi, Wakayama, Nara, Mie, Hokkaido, Tokyo, Niigata, Kanagawa, Nagano, Hiroshima, and Gunma. We are still seeking business partners, one per prefecture, for the remaining prefectures. If you can write and market and are interested in participating in a nationwide consortium please let us know. You do not need to be a company, but you do need to have demonstrated commitment to Japan and business development. Metropolis is supplying the software and marketing, so other than your time and effort, no other major investment required. Revenue-sharing returns are clear-cut and directly connected to results. Powerpoint presentation available on request. To make enquiries, contact: terrie at metropolis.co.jp ------------------------------------------------------------ [...Article continues] The essence is that big companies are going to be compelled by law to save at least 15% of last year's power consumption this year, and smaller companies and homes are going be given non-compulsory targets. Given that Japanese communities are very good at supervising public responsibility activities (think trash separation for example), we suspect that what is voluntary will only be so if you're thick-skinned. Otherwise, we'll all be hitting the targets of at least 15% reduction. Actually, 15% is a number that keeps coming up in the media, but the fact is that in our corner of Minato-ku, our company was told to target a 25% saving and that we have to show how we intend to do that. Given that we moved into the office just a couple of months ago, we're not sure how they intend to measure "savings" but in any case, there doesn't seem to be a mechanism for punishing us if we don't hit their targets. But that doesn't remove the pressure that our staff are feeling in having to devise plans to reduce energy consumption. The things we can do, we are doing: * We have 3-tube overhead fluorescent lights, and will be removing two of these every second panel and one every other panel. We haven't scientifically measured how many lux (lighting brightness) this leaves for employees, but the general office consensus seems to be that people are comfortable with this. Luckily we have windows along both walls, so there is already a generous amount of light in the office. But if you were underground or tucked in between two other tall buildings, this may not be an option. * We already set our air conditioning thermostats to around 25 degrees in the summer, and it is normal in government buildings to set the temperature to a sweaty 28 degrees. This year though, we'll have to set the dial higher, and we feel sorry for those buildings considering 30 degrees as the new standard. Will employees work in their underwear? * We would like to open our windows, but most of them are fixed, in the style of many modern office buildings, and the ones that do open only go so far, for safety reasons. We also have a row of high-set fire windows to release smoke in case of fire, but although they offer excellent ventilation the building management won't let us use them because they are flimsy and likely to break with repeated use -- harrumph! What's more important, a national imperative or occasional repairs? * Seriously, though, probably the biggest heat producer in our building is computers. We are moving our desktop inventory down to low consumption laptops since they are getting so cheap now. Laptops typically consume less power and of course will allow employees to work partly at home if we decide to follow suit with some of the big companies and change our work schedules. Some readers will recall from Terrie's Take 602 (http://bit.ly/mR6dej) that we moved most of our "heat-pumping" servers to a virtualized set-up in a data center, and this has very successfully eliminated the need for a server room and special high-capacity air conditioning. The effect on our power bill has been significant, and now we're wondering if we can use that measure as part of our evidence of power reduction? Either way, we still have several more servers in-house and these are being eyed for quick retirement now as well. Others are going even further: * Large manufacturing companies are implementing one more significant power reducing factor, they are going to close their factories for two week days, typically Thursday and Friday, and have employees work over the weekend instead. The idea here is to simply reduce the peak loads on the electrical grid and thus be more sure there won't be unplanned power cuts to those factories. This of course will create an interesting dynamic, in that there will be a lot more leisure seekers on Thursdays and Fridays, which may create new business opportunities instead. It will also mean that public transport needs to be stepped up on Saturdays and Sundays if the employees are to get to their places of work on time. Actually, the idea of working in a hot sweaty office reminds us of a story told to us years ago about young Japanese lawyer hopefuls sitting their bar exams. They were literally locked away in a darkened room in the middle of summer for three days with no air conditioning. The idea was that sweating together was a test not only of their mental skills but also of their stamina and ability to work under pressure. No wonder the prosecutors win 99% of their cases...! As we've been saying to our overseas friends whenever they ask how business is in Japan, this is a very resilient nation. Yes, we'll all be hotter and working in darkened offices, but apart from the worst days, people will endure and the nation will get past this summer in reasonable shape. Ice cream and coke sales will be going through the roof, super cool biz suits will fly off retailer shelves, and public swimming pools will do a roaring trade -- so there will be a silver lining on this particular heat cloud. Just don't be surprised if you see some sweaty office workers running around virtually in their underwear...! ;-) ...The information janitors/ ***------------------------****-------------------------*** Metropolis Members Club Winners Last week, Jennifer Stannard won a pair of adidas MI Performance customized shoes. Courtesy of Adidas. This coming week, one lucky MMC member will win one night's accommodation for two at The Westin Tokyo. Courtesy of The Westin Tokyo. Our Metropolis Members Club Partners list is growing by leaps and bounds -- join now for great discounts and special offers. No obligations, simply receive our weekly email magazine and enjoy the discounts and prizes. http://metropolis.co.jp/club/ ***------------------------****-------------------------*** --------- BIOS - Bilingual IT Systems and Support --------- BiOS full-service IT solutions has a new service. Working with our fully licenced temporary dispatch group, we are now able to provide Japan in-country workers for companies not yet registered in Japan. This innovative service is available for companies needing to hire staff for Japanese customers, but who are unable to commit to the expense and infrastructure of maintaining an office in Japan. We take care of all aspects of the employment, contracting, and dispatch -- including management of the employee. Also, if you're thinking of Cloud office solutions, take a look at Microsoft's new Business Productivity Online Standard Suite. Terrie mentions Exchange Online in TT602, and we can do the implementations for you. For more information on this and other SI and IT services, in English or Japanese: Phone: (03) 4588-2220, Email: solutions at biosjp.com Web: www.biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ NEWS - Shared child custody legislation on its way - Australia to Japan for just JPY18,000 - Barclays sees big M&A growth in Japan - Datacenter business expands rapidly - Johnson & Johnson looking at big expansion in Japan -> Shared child custody legislation on its way The single biggest and nastiest part of the Japanese family law code is the insistence on a single guardian for a child in the case of a marriage break up. Sometimes the Moms, but usually the Dads, never get to see their kids again. Well, now it looks like Japan will join the 21st century with new legislation just passed. The main focus of the legislation is the ability to resume parental rights for a parent previously banned from contact after being found guilty of child abuse, however, a side provision is that it will now allow multiple people or even a company to become a guardian. ***Ed: Coming hard on the heels of the announcement that Japan would sign the Hague Convention, we think this legislation is a "stealth" change designed to facilitate repatriation and shared visitation rights for international couples. Just they're not saying that this is what it's for, because it's too political. All good stuff, anyway.** (Source: TT commentary from japantimes.co.jp, May 28, 2011) http://search.japantimes.co.jp/mail/nn20110528b2.html -> Australia to Japan for just JPY18,000 Did anyone notice the amazingly cheap one-way fares from Australia to Japan being run by JetStar this last week? Until last night you could buy a ticket out of Cairns to Narita for just JPY18,000. That's cheaper than flying to Okinawa. We don't know what the new prices from today will be (Guys, you need to update your website), but with prices like this, the tourists will definitely start returning to Japan despite any misgivings about the Fukushima power plant. (Source: Reader tip to TT, May 27, 2011) http://bit.ly/jxRQ59 -> Barclays sees big M&A growth in Japan A report from the Nikkei says that Barclays PLC is planning to expand its investment banking team from 48 to 70 staff members, riding on what the bank sees as substantial growth in the M&A of foreign firms by Japanese ones. According to the firm's head, Bob Diamond, the firm is seeing an increase in the number of M&A enquiries from Japanese customers and is sufficiently positive about prospects to bulk up. (Source: TT commentary from nikkei.com, May 28, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110527D27JFF02.htm -> Datacenter business expands rapidly A Nikkei article highlights the sharp increase in corporate interest in remote data storage, following the Tohoku earthquake on March 11. According to the article, two major datacenter players, Sumisho Computer Systems and CSK will double their facilities in Kansai this year, increasing between them to 2,000 racks capable of housing up to 60,000 servers. Apparently demand has risen from 40% occupancy before the quake to an expectation that they will run out of space before the end of the year. Likewise, NTT West has 12,000 racks in Western Japan. A research report by MIC Research Institute had estimated that the Japan data center market would be worth JPY2.16trn in 2015, but that number is now expected to be significantly higher. ***Ed: Clearly companies are expecting a big quake to hit Tokyo.** (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, May 28, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110527D27JFA16.htm -> Johnson & Johnson looking at big expansion in Japan Banking, data centers, and pharmaceuticals appear to be the big plays for expansion in Japan by foreign companies post-quake, and medical/pharma company J&J is no exception. The company has announced that it is planning seven product launches for Japan this year, which after the USA is the second largest market globally for pharmaceuticals. Given that the firm has another 11 new products and over 30 line extensions in the pipeline internationally through to 2015, that would indicate lots of ongoing activity here in Japan. (Source: TT commentary from inpharm.com, May 27, 2011) http://www.inpharm.com/news/157829/jj-aims-japanese-pharma-expansion NOTE: Broken links Many online news sources remove their articles after just a few days of posting them, thus breaking our links -- we apologize for the inconvenience. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** -------- Essential Business Reference in English ---------- If you're a manager or director of a company in Japan, you need these references with detailed explanations in English!!! - Japan Staff Employment Law Guide - 1st Edition Published June, 2010 (JPY 21,000) - Japan Master Tax Guide 2010/11 Published July, 2010 (JPY 18,375) - Japan Corporation Law Guide - 2nd Edition Published November, 2010 (JPY 22,050) *Above prices include tax * As a limited offer for TT readers: 1 title, 5% discount, more than 2 titles, 10% discount. For more details: support at cch.co.jp, call 03-6234-3980. Web: https://www.cch-japan.jp/contents/register/form www.cch-japan.jp ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ CANDIDATE ROUND UP/VACANCIES => BiOS, a Division of the LINC Media group, is actively marketing the following positions for customers setting up or expanding in Japan, as well as other employers of bilinguals. ** HIGHLIGHTED POSITION BiOS is urgently looking for a Helpdesk Engineer with experience providing end-user support in predominantly Japanese language environment at our client?s office in Bunkyo-ku area. The candidate will be responsible for providing helpdesk support services; resolving calls from end users and escalating to the next support level where appropriate, and desktop support services; client PC installation/setup, MS Office support, etc., as well as other office IT support tasks; printer setup, hardware asset management, smart phone setup, etc. You will also be responsible for supporting internal IT engineers from other departments to provide quick and best support to end users. Due to the technical nature and demanding work environment, this position is suitable for someone with solid experience providing more than 2 years of helpdesk/desktop support or equivalent experience with knowledge of MS Office Applications, Domain User Management System, Windows Server 2003/2008, and smart phone setup. In addition, since this role requires direct communication with end users in Japanese and English, daily conversational-level communications skills in English and native-level communications skills in Japanese will be required. Remuneration is JPY4.5m ? JPY5.5m depending on your experience and skill level. ** POSITIONS VACANT - Move Add Change Coordinator, global bank, JPY4m ? JPY5m - BlackBerry Engineer, global bank, JPY4.5m ? JPY5.5m - Field Engineer, BiOS, JPY4.5m ? JPY5.5m - Data Center Engineer, global IT co, JPY3.5m ? JPY4.5m - Bank Operations Staff, global bank, JPY3.5m ? JPY4m Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: tomohiro.kimura at biosjp.com ** BiOS Job Mail Every 2 weeks BiOS sends out a regular communication to its job seeking candidates, called BiOS Job Mail. Every edition carries a list of BiOS's current and most up-to-date vacancies, with each entry featuring a short job description and a direct link to the main entry on the BiOS home page. Regardless of whether you are unemployed and searching, thinking about a career change, or just curious to know if there is something out there that might suit you better, the BiOS Job Mail newsletter is an easy and convenient way for you to stay informed. If you would like to register for the BiOS Job Mail, or to find out more, please email tomohiro.kimura at biosjp.com. Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: tomohiro.kimura at biosjp.com. ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ UPCOMING EVENTS/ANNOUNCEMENTS ------------ Earthquake Kids Charity Dinner --------------- The Support Our Kids Charity Dinner & Auction Date & Time: Friday June 24th, 2011 Doors open at 7:00 p.m. Program from 7:30 - 10:30 p.m. Venue: ANA Intercontinental Hotel Tokyo, Prominence Ballroom Format: Four course seated dinner, beer, great wine and soft drinks. Price: Corporate Table-250,000 yen /table plus tax ( 262,500 yen). (Table of 10 guests) Individual Tickets-15,000 yen plus tax (15,750 yen). Ticketing: Corporate tables-Email for corporate tables to info at support-our-kids.org, or submit the form online. Individual tickets-Please submit the form online, or email sales at support-our-kids.org , and pay by bank transfer. Tax inclusive price 15,750 yen. Dress: Business / Business Casual. Proceeds from the event will go to support orphanages in New Zealand and Japan and to provide 'Time-Out' home stays in New Zealand for young Japanese affected by the Tohoku earthquake. For more information please go to our website www.support-our-kids.org. ----------------------------------------------------------- ------------------ ICA Event - June 16 -------------------- Speaker: Jack Byrd, Managing Partner - 360 Risk Management Group Title: Prevent/Detect Workplace Fraud Details: Complete event details at http://www.icajapan.jp/ (RSVP Required) Date: Thursday, June 16, 2011 Time: 6:30 Doors open, Buffet Dinner included and cash bar Cost: 4,000 yen (members), 6,000 yen (non-members). Open to all. Venue is The Foreign Correspondents' Club of Japan http://www.fccj.or.jp/aboutus/map ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CORRECTIONS/FEEDBACK In this section we run comments and corrections submitted by readers. We encourage you to spot our mistakes and amplify our points, by email, to editors at terrie.com. *** In TT614 we mentioned that 470,000 foreigners left the country at least temporarily between March 12th and April 1st, and wondered if they would ever return. => Reader Comment: I was interested in the comments about the outpouring of foreigners after the earthquake, tsunami, and especially the continuing Fukushima incident. As an historian I need to point out that this happening is not at all new. After the Great Kanto Earthquake of 1923 foreigners streamed out of Yokohama, where the vast majority of foreigners were living in those days, taking ship for Kobe and Hong Kong. It should be noted that it was not until after 1945 the Tokyo became a major center of foreign population. Until that time, Yokohama, Kobe and Hakodate were where they lived and worked. It was the Occupation that opened Tokyo to foreigners in greater numbers. For those who enjoy history, a wander through downtown Yokohama, a hike up the bluff to the remains of one of the destroyed foreign homes, and a rapid descent on the very road taken by the fleeing foreign residents (just south of the Yokohama International School), ought to be enlightening. As someone who now lives within 10 kilometers of a nuclear power plant located on a barrier island in Florida, I can feel the pain of what you are enduring... and live with a certain amount of foreboding. *********************************************************** END SUBSCRIBERS: 8,840 members as of May 29, 2011 (We purge our list regularly.) +++ ABOUT US STAFF Written by: Terrie Lloyd (terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com) HELP: E-mail Terrie-request at mailman.japaninc.com with the word 'help' in the subject or body (don't include the quotes), and you will get back a message with instructions. FEEDBACK Send letters (Feedback, Inquiries & Information) to the editor to terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com. ADVERTISING INFORMATION For more information on advertising in this newsletter, Contact ads at japaninc.com. SUBSCRIBE Get Terrie's Take by giving your name and email address at http://www.japaninc.com/newsletters/free_sign_up, or go straight to Mailman at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ Copyright 2011 Japan Inc. Communications Inc. ----------------- Japan Inc opens up Japan ---------------- J at pan Inc is Japan's only independently published English- language business website. Authoritatively chronicling online the business trends in Japan, each posting brings you in-depth analysis of business, people and technology in the world's second largest economy. Visit www.japaninc.com for the best business insight on Japan available. ----------------------------------------------------------- -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From terrie at mailman.japaninc.com Sun Jun 5 23:20:05 2011 From: terrie at mailman.japaninc.com (Terrie's Take) Date: Sun, 5 Jun 2011 23:20:05 +0900 Subject: Terrie's Take 616 -- Believers in Japan's Health System, e-biz news from Japan Message-ID: * * * * * * * * * T E R R I E 'S T A K E * * * * * * * A weekly roundup of news & information from Terrie Lloyd. (http://www.terrie.com) General Edition Sunday, June 05, 2011, Issue No. 616 +++ INDEX - What's New -- Believers in Japan's Health System - Metropolis Members Club -- 2 air tickets on United - News -- Young stay away from gyms - Candidate Roundup/Vacancies - Upcoming Events -- ICA meeting - Corrections/Feedback - News Credits SUBSCRIBE to, UNSUBSCRIBE from Terrie's Take at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take, or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ ------------ PBXL IP TELEPHONY AND CLOUD BCP -------------- Since PBXL started in 2006, we have consistently focused on providing high quality, cloud based telephony services. Designed around a high-availability, data center based deployment, we are proud to report that our customers were able to both make and receive calls during the earthquake and ensuing challenges. Additionally, due to PBXL?s flexible system design, PBXL was able to continue providing call center services and other enterprise connectivity to both offices and remote workers. With summer coming, and with it likely power shortages, PBXL?s remote access and office solutions enable a mobile workforce to continue to service customers regardless of location, without requiring a phone number change for many Tokyo and Yokohama offices. Call us at 03-4550-2557, e-mail us at bcp at pbxl.jp or for more information on Tokyo and Yokohama power-safe telephony visit us at http://en.pbxl.jp/bcp.php ------------ PBXL is BUSINESS COMMUNICATIONS -------------- +++ WHAT'S NEW We all have our pet peeves about the Japanese "one size fits all" medical system. Our's is being forced to submit to barium meal breakfasts and x-rays every year, as part of the nation's employee health screening program. We know of others who have been unfortunate enough to emerge from local hospitals with infections and complications they didn't go in with, you can't get the latest drugs here without special personal imports, and what drugs you do get are massively over-prescribed, as that is how doctors get paid. But while every health system has its negatives, Japan's does have some amazing positives. By way of anecdotal evidence, we thought we'd share two very special stories with you today. Both involve kids with life-threatening problems, and the parents have been kind enough to let us tell what happened. Although one of the children did not make it, the common thread between both couples is that they can reaffirm the considerable talent, dedication, and financial generosity of the medical system in Japan. Our first parent is Charles McJilton, who runs the NPO food bank Second Harvest. http://www.2hj.org/index.php/what_is. The second is Kim Forsythe-Ferris, who is a founder of the Tyler Foundation, which helps children with cancer. http://www.tylershineon.org/en/. [Continued below...] -------- Remaining Partners for Tourist Web Project ------- Metropolis is rapidly establishing a name for itself on the web, extending its brand and reader base. The company is now engaged in a new nationwide project serving tourists we believe will start returning to Japan in the second half of 2011. So far we have had an outstanding response and have partner candidates for Ishikawa, Fukui, Shiga, Ehime, Okayama, Tochigi, Wakayama, Nara, Mie, Hokkaido, Tokyo, Niigata, Kanagawa, Nagano, Hiroshima, Gunma, and ten others. We are still seeking business partners, one per prefecture, for the remaining prefectures. If you can write and market and are interested in participating in a nationwide consortium please let us know. You do not need to be a company, but you do need to have demonstrated commitment to Japan and business development. Metropolis is supplying the software and marketing, so other than your time and effort, no other major investment required. Revenue-sharing returns are clear-cut and directly connected to results. Powerpoint presentation available on request. To make inquiries, contact: terrie at metropolis.co.jp ------------------------------------------------------------ [...Article continues] ==> Ruby McJilton, as told by father, Charles. Our baby girl, Ruby, was born on 9/18/2010 with a heart defect. My wife and I had planned to return to the US in fall the same year, after the baby got settled, but Ruby's heart condition changed our plans. My wife had to travel ahead in October alone to get her Green Card and at that time she inquired about getting the operation done in the US. That is when she found out it would be US$114,000 for the surgery alone... a very unsettling discovery for us. Early in my wife's pregnancy she was hit by a motorcycle. She was taken to Todai [Ed: Tokyo University Hospital], as it was the only one equipped to handle pregnant women in such situations. Luckily the baby was OK and after several visits we decided to continue with this hospital through her pregnancy until we decided on where to have the baby (in the US or in Japan). In the end, having the baby in Japan and at Todai became our only option. My wife spent three days in labor and finally gave birth by emergency c-section at 0400 on Saturday September 18th. When Ruby was born they immediately knew she was in trouble and put her in ICU for several days. About two weeks later, when I was checking the mail at home, I opened the bill for our treatment and realized that they had not charged us for the three days my wife was in labor nor for Ruby's stay in the ICU. In fact, the local government even gave us JPY450,000 to offset the labor costs and later gave us an additional JPY186,000 to reimburse additional costs we incurred. We cannot say enough about the doctors and nurses at Todai. Our specialist, Dr. Murakami was very quiet and modest. He explained the procedure in great detail on at least four different occasions in English. While I speak Japanese, they made an effort to have someone there who could answer my wife's questions or would wait until I was available to interpret for my wife. My wife and I feel extremely grateful for everyone's support. We also feel a deep sense of gratitude for the Japanese National Health Insurance. In the last Friday of May 2011, my wife paid our hospital bill and could not stop crying when she confirmed again that indeed the amount due was only ?5,200 ($64)..! For the record, the actual cost her operation, the ICU, and the hospital stay, was ?4.6m, (US$56,900). As mentioned, when she checked on costs in the US for the same procedure, she found that the operation alone would have been US$114,000 (?9.2m). We both feel like we have won the lottery. Not only do we have a healthy daughter back home with us, we do not have financial burden of paying medical bills for years to come. Ruby is much happier and breathes so much better. What more could parents want? ==> Tyler Forsythe-Ferris, as told by mother, Kim. Our son Tyler, born in Japan, was diagnosed with a rare form of leukemia when he was just one month old. He spent nearly all of his short two years at the National Center for Child Health and Development in Setagaya, Tokyo. Although we lost Tyler, it was not for lack of excellent medical care. His 10%-30% chance of cure would have been a challenging case in any country and that we had him alive and joyful for nearly two years attests to the quality of medical care we received. We were active in every decision and aspect of his treatment - with the doctors working as a team to give us the best possible direction and explain options. Also, we repeatedly confirmed with doctors literally around the world by phone and email that every step we took was spot on. It was in fact the excellent medical care that made us realize how much this contrasted with the lack of family support and psycho-social support offered to families and children with cancer, and this precipitated our founding of the Tyler Foundation. I would like to point out a few key points regarding our pediatric hospital experience. Some are double edged, but I want to stress that no system is perfect! 1. When it comes to children with serious conditions and diseases, the National Health Care system provides amazing financial support. For our two years in the hospital with Tyler we paid essentially nothing. This includes a bone marrow transplant (which costs about US$250,000 in the US) and a total of over 3 months in the ICU during the more than two years of treatment (probably averaging US$5,000 per day in US). This is quite simply astonishing and something that we cannot begin to express our gratitude for to the Japanese government and its medical system. 2. The pediatric nurses we met over the years were lovely. True, they might not be as highly specialized as in the US (in Japan they often rotate wards every 2 years or so), but in general their demeanor was gentle, sweet and caring. 3. While the tendency to keep kids in hospital for quite a while in Japan can - when treating a long-term illnesses like cancer - have a negative impact on quality of life by keeping kids away from home and siblings, on the other hand there is something to be said about not being kicked out of the hospital when you are not comfortable about caring for a child in such a delicate state. 4. The biggest problem I see is inconsistency in day-to-day hospital life for child patients, as it varies greatly by institution. Nonetheless, the "top" hospitals have doctors who travel often overseas and who have worked in hospitals abroad, and who really embrace "Western" patient care concepts such as transparency in dealing with parents and patients, quality of life while in the hospital, involving the family in aspects of the treatment process, decision-making, etc. So I note that as a foreigner being treated in Japan, if you choose your hospital carefully, you can have excellent care at a truly reasonable price AND have a doctor/hospital experience similar to what you would expect in the USA or other advanced economies. ...The information janitors/ ***------------------------****-------------------------*** Metropolis Members Club Winners Last week Robert Hoey who won one night's accommodation for two at The Westin Tokyo courtesy of The Westin Tokyo. Next we have another GRAND PRIZE, which is a pair of air tickets to any United direct destination in the USA or Asia courtesy of United Airlines. This is the big one...! Our Metropolis Members Club is growing by leaps and bounds -- join now. No obligations, simply receive our weekly email magazine and enjoy the Metropolis stories, discounts, and prizes. http://metropolis.co.jp/club/ ***------------------------****-------------------------*** --------- BIOS - Bilingual IT Systems and Support --------- BiOS full-service IT solutions has a new service. Working with our fully licenced temporary dispatch group, we are now able to provide Japan in-country workers for companies not yet registered in Japan. This innovative service is available for companies needing to hire staff for Japanese customers, but who are unable to commit to the expense and infrastructure of maintaining an office in Japan. We take care of all aspects of the employment, contracting, and dispatch -- including management of the employee. Also, if you're thinking of Cloud office solutions, take a look at Microsoft's new Business Productivity Online Standard Suite. Terrie mentions Exchange Online in TT602, and we can do the same implementations for you. For more information on this and other SI and IT services, in English or Japanese: Phone: (03) 4588-2220, Email: solutions at biosjp.com Web: www.biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ NEWS - Companies to move out of Kanto because of power - Increase in beer consumption expected this summer - Big drop in young people using gyms - Libyan assets seized in Japan - China amongst massive JGB buyers -> Companies to move out of Kanto because of power You wonder how complete the survey is, but apparently a Teikoku Databank poll has found that 7.6% of 3,680 companies within the greater Tokyo area are planning to shift factories or offices away because of power supply problems. The poll also found that 7.5% of retail companies, such as restaurateurs, are planning to move location -- although not necessarily out of the Kanto -- because consumer behaviors have changed. (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Jun 4, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/fr/tnks/Nni20110603D03JFN02.htm -> Increase in beer consumption expected this summer Not everyone is disappointed by the forecasted hot summer about to descend upon us. The beer companies are quietly cheering the weather on, and are expecting consumption to hit a 5-year high this year. Three of the four majors, Asahi, Kirin, and Suntory, all plan to increase production by 10%, while Sapporo will keep numbers at last year's level. Japanese drink about 30% of the year's beer consumption in the period June-August. (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Jun 4, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110603D03JFA15.htm -> Big drop in young people using gyms Interesting stats from a Nikkei article bemoaning the reduction in the number of young people, particularly young women, using gyms. Apparently the average age of of major gym chains such as Central Sports, Renaissance, and Megalos is now around 50 years old, and the percentage of customers in their 20's is now just 10-15% of the total customer base, varying by chain. Operators say that young people can't afford the fees nor the time in the gym, while older folks have become more health aware. So where are the young going? The women at least are apparently heading for yoga studios, and it's estimated that about 1m people were practicing yoga nationwide in 2010, up up 500% over 2003. (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Jun 4, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110604D04HH686.htm -> Libyan assets seized in Japan Coordinating with US- and European-led efforts to squeeze Muammar Gaddafi out of power, Japan has joined the fray by seizing an estimated US$4.4bn in assets, including bank accounts here. The government has not said what assets have been seized, but with that level we have to assume it is at least a mix of stocks, bonds, and property. ***Ed: The scale of Gaddafi and his cronies' holdings outside Libya gives you some idea of just how much they've screwed the country over the last 42 years. Also interesting how the Japanese authorities made the seizures without any fuss or fanfare.** (Source: TT commentary from afp on google.com, Jun 4, 2011) http://bit.ly/jOBKj0 -> China amongst massive JGB buyers Following a similar pattern to last year when there were simultaneous concerns about the US dollar and the Euro, foreign buyers have bought up a record amount of Japanese bonds in the last five weeks, hitting JPY4.696trn. Apparently part of the surge is due to China getting out of Euro and dollars and buying maturing 4- and 5-year bonds as a short term position to park money. **Ed: Apart from the Euro and Dollar, the Yen is the only currency available in sufficient quantity that it can serve as a parking place for massive amounts of foreign investment -- thus the paradox of a not-so-healthy economy but lots of yen buying going on.** (Source: TT commentary from reuters.com, May 27, 2011) http://reut.rs/kez233 NOTE: Broken links Many online news sources remove their articles after just a few days of posting them, thus breaking our links -- we apologize for the inconvenience. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** -------- Essential Business Reference in English ---------- If you're a manager or director of a company in Japan, you need these references with detailed explanations in English!!! - Japan Staff Employment Law Guide - 1st Edition Published June, 2010 (JPY 21,000) - Japan Master Tax Guide 2010/11 Published July, 2010 (JPY 18,375) - Japan Corporation Law Guide - 2nd Edition Published November, 2010 (JPY 22,050) * Above prices include tax * As a limited offer for TT readers: 1 title, 5% discount, more than 2 titles, 10% discount. For more details: support at cch.co.jp, call 03-6234-3980. Web: https://www.cch-japan.jp/contents/register/form www.cch-japan.jp ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ CANDIDATE ROUND UP/VACANCIES => BiOS, a Division of the LINC Media group, is actively marketing the following positions for customers setting up or expanding in Japan, as well as other employers of bilinguals. ** HIGHLIGHTED POSITION BiOS is urgently looking for a BlackBerry Specialist with experience providing technical support for smart phone to end users at our client?s office in the Shinagawa-ku area. The candidate will be responsible for setting up BlackBerry products for business use, based on requests from end-users and from staff to executive levels; as well as coordinating with technical engineers from both internal and external teams to provide best services on a timely basis. You will also be responsible for analyzing support processes, services, results, feedback, etc. to continuously improve service delivery processes. Due to the technical nature and demanding work environment, this position is suitable for someone with solid experience either programming smart phone applications or setting up smart phones for business use. In addition, since this role requires direct communication with C-level end users from abroad, fluent-level communications skills in English will be required. Remuneration is JPY4.5m ? JPY5.5m depending on your experience and skill level. ** POSITIONS VACANT - Web Designer, outsourcing co, JPY3.5m ? JPY4.5m - Junior Account Manager, BiOS, JPY3.5m ? JPY4.5m - Move Add Change Coordinator, global bank, JPY4m ? JPY5m - Senior Network Engineer, global ibank, JPY8m ? JPY 12m - Helpdesk Engr, global pharmaceutical co, JPY4m ? JPY5m Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: tomohiro.kimura at biosjp.com ** BiOS Job Mail Every 2 weeks BiOS sends out a regular communication to its job seeking candidates, called BiOS Job Mail. Every edition carries a list of BiOS's current and most up-to-date vacancies, with each entry featuring a short job description and a direct link to the main entry on the BiOS home page. Regardless of whether you are unemployed and searching, thinking about a career change, or just curious to know if there is something out there that might suit you better, the BiOS Job Mail newsletter is an easy and convenient way for you to stay informed. If you would like to register for the BiOS Job Mail, or to find out more, please email kenji.sakota at biosjp.com. Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: tomohiro.kimura at biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ UPCOMING EVENTS/ANNOUNCEMENTS ------------ Earthquake Kids Charity Dinner --------------- The Support Our Kids Charity Dinner & Auction Date & Time: Friday June 24th, 2011 Doors open at 7:00 p.m. Program from 7:30 - 10:30 p.m. Venue: ANA Intercontinental Hotel Tokyo, Prominence Ballroom Format: Four course seated dinner, beer, great wine and soft drinks. Price: Corporate Table-250,000 yen /table plus tax ( 262,500 yen). (Table of 10 guests) Individual Tickets-15,000 yen plus tax (15,750 yen). Ticketing: Corporate tables-Email for corporate tables to info at support-our-kids.org, or submit the form online. Individual tickets-Please submit the form online, or email sales at support-our-kids.org , and pay by bank transfer. Tax inclusive price 15,750 yen. Dress: Business / Business Casual. Proceeds from the event will go to support orphanages in New Zealand and Japan and to provide 'Time-Out' home stays in New Zealand for young Japanese affected by the Tohoku earthquake. For more information please go to our website www.support-our-kids.org. ----------------------------------------------------------- ------------------ ICA Event - June 16 -------------------- Speaker: Jack Byrd, Managing Partner - 360 Risk Management Group Title: Prevent/Detect Workplace Fraud Details: Complete event details at http://www.icajapan.jp/ (RSVP Required) Date: Thursday, June 16, 2011 Time: 6:30 Doors open, Buffet Dinner included and cash bar Cost: 4,000 yen (members), 6,000 yen (non-members). Open to all. Venue is The Foreign Correspondents' Club of Japan http://www.fccj.or.jp/aboutus/map ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CORRECTIONS/FEEDBACK In this section we run comments and corrections submitted by readers. We encourage you to spot our mistakes and amplify our points, by email, to editors at terrie.com. *** No corrections or feedback this week. *********************************************************** END SUBSCRIBERS: 8,845 members as of June 05, 2011 (We purge our list regularly.) +++ ABOUT US STAFF Written by: Terrie Lloyd (terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com) HELP: E-mail Terrie-request at mailman.japaninc.com with the word 'help' in the subject or body (don't include the quotes), and you will get back a message with instructions. FEEDBACK Send letters (Feedback, Inquiries & Information) to the editor to terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com. ADVERTISING INFORMATION For more information on advertising in this newsletter, Contact ads at japaninc.com. SUBSCRIBE Get Terrie's Take by giving your name and email address at http://www.japaninc.com/newsletters/free_sign_up, or go straight to Mailman at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ Copyright 2011 Japan Inc. Communications Inc. ----------------- Japan Inc opens up Japan ---------------- J at pan Inc is Japan's only independently published English- language business website. Authoritatively chronicling online the business trends in Japan, each posting brings you in-depth analysis of business, people and technology in the world's second largest economy. Visit www.japaninc.com for the best business insight on Japan available. ----------------------------------------------------------- -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From terrie at mailman.japaninc.com Mon Jun 13 02:53:55 2011 From: terrie at mailman.japaninc.com (Terrie's Take) Date: Mon, 13 Jun 2011 02:53:55 +0900 Subject: Terrie's Take 617 -- Content Publishers Need a Software Alliance, e-biz news from Japan Message-ID: * * * * * * * * * T E R R I E 'S T A K E * * * * * * * A weekly roundup of news & information from Terrie Lloyd. (http://www.terrie.com) General Edition Sunday, June 12, 2011, Issue No. 617 +++ INDEX - What's New -- Content Publishers Need a Software Alliance - Metropolis Members Club winners - News -- Bankruptcies of SMEs rises - Candidate Roundup/Vacancies - Upcoming Events -- Next Entrepreneur Seminar set - Corrections/Feedback - News Credits SUBSCRIBE to, UNSUBSCRIBE from Terrie's Take at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take, or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ ----------- UPGRADE TODAY TO PBXL IP TELEPHONY ------------ PBXL has the solution for your office. PBXL will purchase and dispose of your outdated, unsupported phone system and provide you with state-of-the-art Cisco VoIP telephony. Designed with scalable enterprise level functionality for companies ranging from two seats to two hundred, PBXL is the perfect cost-effective solution when opening an office, expanding a business, or rolling out a new BCP location. For additional information call us anytime at 03-4550-1600, e-mail us at info at pbxl.jp or visit http://en.pbxl.co.jp/ ------------ PBXL is BUSINESS COMMUNICATIONS -------------- +++ WHAT'S NEW When our sister company Japan Inc. Holdings first bought out the Metropolis magazine in late 2007, one of the top items on the agenda was to create a better web presence for the magazine, that would allow it to fight back against web-only companies who were staking out ground traditionally claimed by Metropolis. Unfortunately, due mainly to lack of experience and by using low-cost off-shore resources, several attempts at producing online applications were notable failures. In fact the only real success Metropolis had was the simple reproduction of content on a Wordpress Content Management System (CMS). Wordpress, by-the-way, is great. It is very stable, easy to learn and has great functionality. Drupal, Joomla, and other CMS's are also good, but it's Wordpress that has market mass and developer momentum behind it. Those rather costly failures helped us learn, as have many other publishers and ordinary companies who publish content regularly, that to compete properly with the web-only firms, you have to be a software company or have a friendly one very close at hand. Using outside resources makes you totally reliant on them, and we found that critical points of failure are the partner's availability, their ability to communicate, continuity of engineering resources, and a proper understanding of your business field. Thus, early last year, after the second outsourced effort, we decided to set up a separate software company, called MetroWorks. Some of you may recall seeing ads in Terrie's Take soliciting potential investors. In case you were wondering about the effectiveness of this type of approach to getting funding, out of 45 inquiries arising from the Terrie's Take ads, 12 people invested. [Continued below...] -------- Remaining Partners for Tourist Web Project ------- Our many thanks to the 30+ partner candidates who have contacted us so far. The project is moving forward with great momentum and full project details are available for interested parties. We still have openings for partners in the following prefectures: Aomori, Iwate, Akita, Yamagata, Fukushima, Niigata, Toyama, Fukui, Yamanashi, Gifu, Shizuoka, Aichi, Mie, Kyoto, Hyogo, Yamaguchi, Tokushima, Kagawa, Kochi, Saga, Nagasaki, Oita, Miyazaki, and Kagoshima If you can write and market tourism for your prefecture, as part of a nationwide English-language tourism push under the Metropolis banner, then please email us today for our Powerpoint presentation. Initial project manager: terrie at metropolis.co.jp ------------------------------------------------------------ [...Article continues] The MetroWorks team has been hard at work ever since and has created a range of primarily PHP-based applications that allow non-software companies to interact with and monetize their audiences and yet don't require those publishers to cannibalize their offline (paper) content. For Metropolis magazine, the first application to be implemented was a new, much faster version of the Classifieds, which MetroWorks delivered in November 2010. While the previous online Classifieds software was slow and unreliable, the new application has been running strongly and the growth of new business was immediately obvious. Now the online Classifieds account for a significant part of Metropolis' total online revenue. "Women seeking men" and vice versa have never been happier...! :-) As a side note, it's a strange thing that Classified ads have never really caught on in Japan. We're not sure why -- perhaps text-only ads seem too simple? Anyway, there is no real equivalent to Craig's List here. This of course provides an excellent market for MetroWorks, which is now speaking to a number of Japanese publishers about getting their users on to self-service, online, mini ads. Following on from the Classifieds has been a new application, internally called the RBR Engine, which is a ranking/reviewing engine modeled on several famous restaurant/dining sites on the web. In its current incarnation, the RBR engine is on the Metropolis website as MetroDining.jp. If you haven't tried out MetroDining yet (URL: www.metrodining.jp), you should. The database is currently being populated with the 2,000 or so food articles that Metropolis has published in recent years, and Metropolis editors tell us that currently about 900 restaurants are up and running. They are aiming for about another 50-100 restaurants a month, as well as dozens of reader reviews, and by the end of this year will have the largest online database in English of places to eat out in Tokyo. Other cities are not far behind. There are other restaurant evaluation sites in English out there, and several are very good, so what makes MetroDining so different? Answer: the availability of a friendly, local, software company. By this we mean that MetroWorks was able to go through some of the best of breed ranking/reviewer engines out there, such as yelp.com, tabelog.com, and gurunavi.com, and pick up advanced features not available on competitor sites. As a result, today Metrodining.jp has user/reviewer input tools, likes/dislikes to weight reviews so as to improve review quality, and shortly, loyalty points. In addition the site includes merchant input tools, so that restaurant and bar owners can put up offers and general information in a self service context. The advantage of a close software company has become clear in recent weeks as the Metrodining.jp site has been launched and fine-tuned. For example, it was designed to run on a browser on mobile devices, but Metropolis quickly found that iPhone browsing using Softbank as the carrier (eMobile connections are much faster) is very slow. So slow in fact, that it makes the application look like it is at fault. It didn't take long to realize that this is why so many media companies have released iPhone applications, because an "in-device" front-end can mask to a certain extent the bandwidth availability issues and make for a better user experience. Thus, MetroWorks will be turning out an iPhone application for Metrodining.jp in the next few weeks. Another application that has just been released by MetroWorks is a Social Network System (SNS) engine, similar to what you might find on Facebook. http://metropolis.co.jp/community/ Why, you might wonder, would MetroWorks try to recreate a web service that already has 500m members? The reason is quite simple: people may go to Facebook to meet existing friends, but they don't as easily find new friends there. Yes, there are groups, but these tend to be made up of a very diverse membership and are often difficult to feel comfortable participating in. For this reason, web users will still look at brands that represent a particular value or brand, and if SNS functionality is available, then they will use that brand to complement their existing activity on Facebook. So it has been that Metropolis launched its first version SNS in November 2009, and quickly gathered about 12,500 members. As mentioned, all of those users could easily just stay on Facebook, but in addition they are using the Metropolis as well. Metropolis represents a connection between Japanese and non-Japanese, and access to foreign lifestyles in Japan. As a brand, it's very focused, and users know and like this. Unfortunately Metropolis' SNS growth started to slow and so about two weeks ago, MetroWorks upgraded the SNS to a version which is much more secure and has some rather cool new functions within its Facebook-like presentation -- like Twitter-style follower features. The new functionality has kicked the SNS back into life and there are now 14,400 members, boosted by new sign-ups every day. So what have we learned about running a relationship between a content-producing business and a software development partner? * The software partner needs to have interests closely aligned to those of the content company, so as to ensure efficient and effective use of resources. Some form of profit-sharing is a great way to achieve this. * The software partner needs to allocate engineers to projects on the basis that those engineers will continue to be available in the future. Even with the best code notation practices, you can't beat having the original engineer being available to tell another how an application is built and works. * There needs to be a senior manager in the content company who is highly motivated to understanding the software development process and who will take ownership of setting milestones, pushing projects along, and getting in at the front end of a project to review designs and features. This is not easy to do, because it requires strong conceptualization and communication skills, AND, can be really boring! Clearly someone with a marketing background and yet lots of patience is the best candidate for this. * There needs to be an understanding that no specification is ever 100% appropriate to users on the Web, and it is not until an application is up and running that you find out how people will react to it. Yes, you can run focus groups and make sure that testing and debugging follow best practices, but sometimes you just can't tell if a given business model will work until you try it. * Therefore, there needs to be a high level of flexibility on what the application will finally look like, so that as preliminary user reactions come in, the content company's senior manager AND his/her counterpart in the software partner are prepared to rip apart the interface or the functionality in order to give users something they actually want. Lastly, one more really great thing we have learned is that there are so many gaps and opportunities in the market for web-based software applications. As we found with the Classifieds for Metropolis magazine, there are many barely touched application areas that are proven and crowded abroad and yet are virgin territory here. The current economy may be in a state of disarray, but it's an exciting time to be developing new web sites and online social functionality. ...The information janitors/ ***------------------------****-------------------------*** Metropolis Members Club Winners The week before last, Robert Hoey who won one night's accommodation for two at The Westin Tokyo courtesy of The Westin Tokyo. In the next two weeks we have another GRAND PRIZE, which is a pair of air tickets to any United direct destination in the USA or Asia courtesy of United Airlines. This is the big one...! Our Metropolis Members Club is growing by leaps and bounds -- join now. No obligations, simply receive our weekly email magazine and enjoy the Metropolis stories, discounts, and prizes. http://metropolis.co.jp/club/ ***------------------------****-------------------------*** --------- BIOS - Bilingual IT Systems and Support --------- BiOS full-service IT solutions has a new service. Working with our fully licenced temporary dispatch group, we are now able to provide Japan in-country workers for companies not yet registered in Japan. This innovative service is available for companies needing to hire staff for Japanese customers, but who are unable to commit to the expense and infrastructure of maintaining an office in Japan. We take care of all aspects of the employment, contracting, and dispatch -- including management of the employee. Also, if you're thinking of Cloud office solutions, take a look at Microsoft's new Business Productivity Online Standard Suite. Terrie mentions Exchange Online in TT602, and we can do the same implementations for you. For more information on this and other SI and IT services, in English or Japanese: Phone: (03) 4588-2220, Email: solutions at biosjp.com Web: www.biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ NEWS - Mizuho debacle precipitates FSA probe - Japanese prefectures being trademarked in China - Bankruptcies on the rise - Survey says 28.5% of companies planning HR outside Tokyo - Ascendant Business Solutions KK sold -> Mizuho debacle precipitates FSA probe The Financial Services Agency (FSA) is apparently looking at conducting a probe into major banks IT operations and their ability to respond to outages and emergencies such as the one that Mizuho went through after the March 11 earthquake, when its ATM network crashed for several weeks. ***Ed: Mizuho has always said publicly that the ATM crash was caused by a surge of donations for Tohoku/Sendai earthquake victims, but it's interesting to see that the FSA is probing, amongst other things, how each bank's IT systems are managed and how that management is delegated. We can't help wondering if Mizuho had outsourced some of its ATM work to another company and for this reason was unable to maintain services themselves after the quake.** (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Jun 09, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/fr/tnks/Nni20110609D09JFN02.htm -> Japanese prefectures being trademarked in China Although globally it is accepted practice that you can't trademark place names, it seems that within China trademark registrations of place names is quite rampant. The Japan Patent Office has reported that at least Fukui, Aichi, Kagawa, and 23 other locations in Japan were registered in China in the last 12 months. Apparently Hokkaido, Aomori, Nagasaki and 6 other prefectures have made applications in China themselves to try to protect themselves from such patent squatting. ***Ed: Our company tried once to register the name JapanInc.com, and was told that as a place name it would be disallowed. We finally got approval by changing the "a" in "Japan" to an "@", which is why Japan Inc. magazine is spelled J at pan Inc.** (Source: TT commentary from nikkei.com, Jun 11, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110611D10JFA01.htm -> Bankruptcies on the rise Japan has successfully kept bankruptcies low over the last couple of years (since the Lehman Shock) by providing bank loan repayment forgiveness for many small and medium-sized companies. While this has served to keep tens of thousands of firms in business, the additional stress of the post-earthquake economy has proven too heavy for many and according to Tokyo Shoko Research, bankruptcies of firms with debts of JPY10MM or more jumped to 1,071 in May, up 4.9% from the same period last year. ***Ed: Our bet is that the volume of smaller and medium-sized companies will start to surge over the coming months, especially those in the hospitality and entertainment sectors.** (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Jun 08, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110608D08SS205.htm -> Survey says 28.5% of companies planning HR outside Tokyo A recent survey by recruiter Hays Japan has found that of just over 200 Japanese and International companies polled, about 28.5% plan to build HR resources outside of Tokyo, so as to diversify risk. The companies appear to favor the Kansai, Kyushu, and Hokkaido mostly, with many of these simply continuing to stay on after temporary relocations originally implimented after the March 11 earthquake. ***Ed: The same survey found that 51% of companies identified IT as their most important job function, followed by 34.5% naming HR.** (Source: TT commentary from wsj.com, Jun 09, 2011) http://on.wsj.com/mHLTei -> Ascendant Business Solutions KK sold While it may be a tough market for foreign firms in Japan right now, some M&A deals are still getting done. The Ascendant Business Solutions KK company was sold on May 20th to a Hong Kong conglomerate called Tricor for an undisclosed sum. Our congratulations go to founder Mark Ferris and his management team for their success, and we understand that the team will stay with the company for a while. Tricor is a major corporate services firm, with over 1,500 employees in 14 countries, mostly in Asia. (Source: TT commentary from ascendant website, May 24, 2011) http://www.ascendantbusiness.co.jp/en/ NOTE: Broken links Many online news sources remove their articles after just a few days of posting them, thus breaking our links -- we apologize for the inconvenience. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CANDIDATE ROUND UP/VACANCIES => BiOS, a Division of the LINC Media group, is actively marketing the following positions for customers setting up or expanding in Japan, as well as other employers of bilinguals. ** HIGHLIGHTED POSITION BiOS is urgently looking for a software developer with experience developing iPhone applications at our partner company?s office in the Minato-ku area. The candidate will be responsible for creating/updating/modifying existing iOS applications, as well as creating/managing server-side resources such as; data, files, data interchange, etc. You will also be responsible for providing support for other projects team is working on (i.e. web development). Due to the technical nature and demanding work environment, this position is suitable for someone with solid experience developing iApps and who has proficiency in Objective C and iOS SDK technologies. In addition, since this role requires coordination with multinational team members and managers, business-level communications skills in both English and Japanese will be required, although English-only and Japanese-only applicants will be considered. Remuneration is JPY4.5m ? JPY6m depending on your experience and skill level. ** POSITIONS VACANT - Enterprise Support Mgr, global sw co, JPY8M ? JPY11m - Snr Web Apps Dev, global ceramics co., JPY4.5m ? JPY5.5m - Move/Add/Change Coordinator, global bank, JPY4m ? JPY5m - Marketing Comms Specialist, global sw co, JPY6m ? JPY8m - Netcare Engineer, BiOS, JPY4m ? JPY5m Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: tomohiro.kimura at biosjp.com ** BiOS Job Mail Every 2 weeks BiOS sends out a regular communication to its job seeking candidates, called BiOS Job Mail. Every edition carries a list of BiOS's current and most up-to-date vacancies, with each entry featuring a short job description and a direct link to the main entry on the BiOS home page. Regardless of whether you are unemployed and searching, thinking about a career change, or just curious to know if there is something out there that might suit you better, the BiOS Job Mail newsletter is an easy and convenient way for you to stay informed. If you would like to register for the BiOS Job Mail, or to find out more, please email kenji.sakota at biosjp.com. Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: tomohiro.kimura at biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ UPCOMING EVENTS/ANNOUNCEMENTS ---------------- CCH Labor Law Seminar -------------------- CCH Japan presents its 'Japan Labor & Employment Law Seminar 2011' Covered are the following key topics: - Avoiding HR Management pitfalls in your business - Dealing with salary reductions, poor performance, sexual harassment, bullying, creating work rules,etc. Date: Friday, 24th June 1:30pm-5:00pm Venue: Happo-en 5F Linden Room Language:English Speaker:Hideki Kano Attorney, Anderson, Mori & Tomotsune Fees: 20,000JPY+Tax Register: https://www.cch-japan.jp/contents/register/form Related Books: Japanese Labor & Employment Law and Practice 1st Edition (published 10th June) * Seminar participants qualify for special 10% discount! For more details, please contact us at: support at cch.co.jp, or 03-3265-1161. www.cch-japan.jp ----------------------------------------------------------- ------------------ ICA Event - June 16 -------------------- Speaker: Jack Byrd, Managing Partner - 360 Risk Management Group Title: Prevent/Detect Workplace Fraud Details: Complete event details at http://www.icajapan.jp/ (RSVP Required) Date: Thursday, June 16, 2011 Time: 6:30 Doors open, Buffet Dinner included and cash bar Cost: 4,000 yen (members), 6,000 yen (non-members). Open to all. Venue is The Foreign Correspondents' Club of Japan http://www.fccj.or.jp/aboutus/map ----------------------------------------------------------- --------------- Start a Company in Japan ------------------ Entrepreneur's Handbook Seminar 16th of July, 2011 If you have been considering setting up your own company, find out what it takes to make it successful. Terrie Lloyd, founder of over 17 start-up companies in Japan, will be giving an English-language seminar and Q&A on starting up a company in Japan. This is an ideal opportunity to find out what is involved, and to ask specific questions that are not normally answered in business books. All materials are in English and are Japan-focused. Over 450 people have taken this seminar in the last 8 years, and approximately 20% have gone on to form companies. For more details: http://www.japaninc.com/entrepreneur_handbook_seminar ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CORRECTIONS/FEEDBACK In this section we run comments and corrections submitted by readers. We encourage you to spot our mistakes and amplify our points, by email, to editors at terrie.com. *** In Terrie's Take 615, we wrote about how the government came up with its energy saving figures. A helpful reader offers the likely answer: => Reader: In the newsletter, it seemed like you wondered where the 25% figure for energy reduction came from, instead of the 15% figure that keeps appearing in the media. The original goal of 6% energy reduction was from Team Minus Six, "Team Minus 6%" was established in April 2005 as a Japanese international commitment to the Kyoto Protocol, and is a national campaign against global warming aimed at cutting greenhouse gas emissions by 6%. The team leader is the Prime Minister and the sub-leader is the Minister of the Environment. Reference: http://www.team-6.jp/english/about.html This morphed into "Challenge 25" starting January 2011 (even before the Great East Japan Earthquake) which had the new goal of a 25% reduction. This campaign consists of the following six challenges (my translation, no English translation on the official web site): 1. Choosing Eco Lifestyle: CoolBiz, WarmBiz, My Bag, Public Transportation 2. Choosing Low Energy Appliances: LED/CFL lightbulbs, Purchasing Replacement Energy Efficient Appliances, Eco Automobiles 3. Choosing Natural Energy: Solar, Wind, Water, Green Power 4. Choosing Building and Home Eco: Eco Reform, Eco Building/Office 5. Choosing Carbon Dioxide Reduction: (Low) Carbon Footprint Goods, Carbon Offset Goods, Local Producers 6. Participating in Activities to Stop Global Warming: Participating in Events, Car Share/Rental Bicycles, Park and Ride Reference: http://www.challenge25.go.jp/index.html *********************************************************** END SUBSCRIBERS: 8,866 members as of June 12, 2011 (We purge our list regularly.) +++ ABOUT US STAFF Written by: Terrie Lloyd (terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com) HELP: E-mail Terrie-request at mailman.japaninc.com with the word 'help' in the subject or body (don't include the quotes), and you will get back a message with instructions. FEEDBACK Send letters (Feedback, Inquiries & Information) to the editor to terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com. ADVERTISING INFORMATION For more information on advertising in this newsletter, Contact ads at japaninc.com. SUBSCRIBE Get Terrie's Take by giving your name and email address at http://www.japaninc.com/newsletters/free_sign_up, or go straight to Mailman at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ Copyright 2011 Japan Inc. Communications Inc. ----------------- Japan Inc opens up Japan ---------------- J at pan Inc is Japan's only independently published English- language business website. Authoritatively chronicling online the business trends in Japan, each posting brings you in-depth analysis of business, people and technology in the world's second largest economy. Visit www.japaninc.com for the best business insight on Japan available. ----------------------------------------------------------- -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From terrie at mailman.japaninc.com Sun Jun 19 23:49:26 2011 From: terrie at mailman.japaninc.com (Terrie's Take) Date: Sun, 19 Jun 2011 23:49:26 +0900 Subject: Terrie's Take 618 -- Addicted to Chinese Trainees, e-biz news from Japan Message-ID: * * * * * * * * * T E R R I E 'S T A K E * * * * * * * A weekly roundup of news & information from Terrie Lloyd. (http://www.terrie.com) General Edition Sunday, June 19, 2011, Issue No. 618 +++ INDEX - What's New -- Addicted to Chinese Trainees - Metropolis Members Club winners - News -- Consumer loans market shrinks by 30% - Candidate Roundup/Vacancies - Upcoming Events -- Next Entrepreneur Seminar - Corrections/Feedback - News Credits SUBSCRIBE to, UNSUBSCRIBE from Terrie's Take at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take, or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ ----------- UPGRADE TODAY TO PBXL IP TELEPHONY ------------ PBXL has the solution for your office. PBXL will purchase and dispose of your outdated, unsupported phone system and provide you with state-of-the-art Cisco VoIP telephony. Designed with scalable enterprise level functionality for companies ranging from two seats to two hundred, PBXL is the perfect cost-effective solution when opening an office, expanding a business, or rolling out a new BCP location. For additional information call us anytime at 03-4550-1600, e-mail us at info at pbxl.jp or visit http://en.pbxl.co.jp/ ------------ PBXL is BUSINESS COMMUNICATIONS -------------- +++ WHAT'S NEW According to an article in the Japan Times on Thursday, quoting numbers from a Labor Ministry report released earlier in the week, there are now 2.02m people in Japan receiving welfare checks, more than any time since 1952. "Welfare" in Japan is apparently defined as financial assistance offered by the government to a household when its total income falls below the national minimum. Presumably a big contributor to this record number of needy people has been the Great East Japan earthquake in March. The level of joblessness has soared to around 90% of employable survivors in the worst hit areas, and by the end of May about 110,000 were out of work and applying for the dole at various Hello Work offices in Iwate, Miyagi, and Fukushima prefectures. So, one would think that with this excess capacity of workers, many of whom are from the agricultural, fisheries, and manufacturing industries, juxtaposed with the phenomenon of disappearing Chinese trainee workers from factories around the same regions, less than half of whom are yet to return, that there would be a slew of local hirings to make up the shortfall. Certainly after the Chinese trainees fled the disaster areas, there were plenty of news reports of employers grumpily saying, "We can't trust Chinese employees, next time we'll hire locals." But are they following through with local hiring offers? Our guess is "not". [Continued below...] -------- Remaining Partners for Tourist Web Project ------- Our many thanks to the 30+ partner candidates who have contacted us so far. The project is moving forward with great momentum and full project details are available for interested parties. We still have the following prefectures available: Aomori, Iwate, Akita, Yamagata, Fukushima, Niigata, Toyama, Fukui, Yamanashi, Gifu, Shizuoka, Aichi, Mie, Kyoto, Hyogo, Yamaguchi, Tokushima, Kagawa, Kochi, Saga, Nagasaki, Oita, Miyazaki, and Kagoshima If you can write and market tourism for your prefecture, as part of a nationwide English-language tourism push under the Metropolis banner, then please email us today for our Powerpoint presentation. Initial project manager: terrie at metropolis.co.jp ------------------------------------------------------------ [...Article continues] The reason is because a Japanese breadwinner from Iwate on unemployment, or even welfare, can still receive 2-5 times more than the Chinese trainees do for the same jobs. The factory and farm operators may grizzle about their "unreliable" Chinese employees, but without this source of ultra-cheap labor, they have no way of being able to compete with the flood of goods and produce coming in from China itself. The fact is that thousands of small companies all over Japan are addicted to cheap trainee labor from China and elsewhere, and to go local they would soon go out of business. Thus, unless the government comes up with some kind of subsidy system, the folks in Fukushima will stay unemployed and the missing trainees will be replaced with new trainees just as soon as the recruiters in the remoter regions of China can find them. We have mentioned before in Terrie's Take (TT-399 -- Trainees or slaves?), foreign "trainees" in Japan are paid a pittance. On average they make about JPY60,000 a month in the first year, then if they are lucky, around JPY120,000 a month for the following two years, after which they have to return to their home country. One of our readers alerted us to an excellent report just put out this month by a Hong Kong labor relations think tank called the China Labor Bulletin. The report is called 'Throw Away Labor -- The Exploitation of Chinese "Trainees" in Japan' and is a encapsulation of the appalling situation involving the virtual slave trade going on between Chinese recruiters and small- to medium-sized companies in rural Japan who need this cheap labor to survive. Get the report at: http://www.clb.org.hk/en/node/101071. It's a quick read. The report chronicles the various miseries that Chinese trainees experience once they get to Japan, including: withheld wages, no or very underpaid overtime, withheld passports, threats of law suits if they flee back to China, unsanitary living conditions, extremely difficult working conditions... well the list goes on. And of course it's debatable whether such trainees actually receive any education worth taking home with them. The problem is that when you have poor and relatively uneducated people from the Chinese hinterland making just 2,000 yuan per month (JPY26,000), almost anything sounds better than what they have, especially when a recruiter mentions Japan. The report details how trainees are inveigled into a contract, and once committed, how they are locked in to delivering that contract under very harsh (and real) threats of legal action back in China. This cheap labor addiction represents the reality of the Japanese rural labor market. No doubt we'll see the media highlighting how locals are landing construction jobs and getting back on their feet -- that makes for feel-good copy. But with only a comparatively small number of such jobs going, there may well be a larger number of new "trainee" visas being issued so as to ensure that the rural factories and farms stay in business for a while longer. Our thanks to Geoffrey Crothall, Director of Communications of the China Labour Bulletin for giving us permission to quote parts of the organizations report. http://www.clb.org.hk/en/ ...The information janitors/ ***------------------------****-------------------------*** Metropolis Members Club Winners Congratulations to: Tanya Zminkowski who a pair of tickets to any United direct destination in the USA or Asia courtesy of United Airlines. Next week, one lucky MMC member will win one night's stay for two at the Hotel Avanshell Akasaka, courtesy of Solare Hotels and Resorts. Our Metropolis Members Club is growing by leaps and bounds -- join now. No obligations, simply receive our weekly email magazine and enjoy the Metropolis stories, discounts, and prizes. http://metropolis.co.jp/club/ ***------------------------****-------------------------*** --------- BIOS - Bilingual IT Systems and Support --------- BiOS full-service IT solutions has a new service. Working with our fully licenced temporary dispatch group, we are now able to provide Japan in-country workers for companies not yet registered in Japan. This innovative service is available for companies needing to hire staff for Japanese customers, but who are unable to commit to the expense and infrastructure of maintaining an office in Japan. We take care of all aspects of the employment, contracting, and dispatch -- including management of the employee. Also, if you're thinking of Cloud office solutions, take a look at Microsoft's new Business Productivity Online Standard Suite. Terrie mentions Exchange Online in TT602, and we can do the same implementations for you. For more information on this and other SI and IT services, in English or Japanese: Phone: (03) 4588-2220, Email: solutions at biosjp.com Web: www.biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ NEWS - Japan ranks 4th globally for rule of law - Suicides up in tsunami-hit areas - Brand Off to IPO in Hong Kong? - Nissan/JAF to offer EV roadside recharge service - Consumer loans market shrinks by 30% -> Japan ranks 4th globally for rule of law A little tidbit that may surprise a lot of readers... According to the World Justice Project, Japan is Number Four globally and Number Two in Asia when it comes to rule of law. The project measures each nation's justice apparatus for effectiveness, security, transparency, and some other factors. The report notes that Japan has a low score in terms of accessibility and affordability. Apparently New Zealand topped the asian region in the same survey. (Source: TT commentary from worldjusticeproject.org's own website, Jun 14, 2011) http://worldjusticeproject.org/sites/default/files/Japan.pdf -> Suicides up in tsunami-hit areas Although it is too early to predict an overall trend, it appears from initial data that the rate of suicide by post-tsunami survivors has jumped by 18%. Indeed, in Miyagi the rate has soared to 39% over last year. A government report is warning of a lot more cases of post-traumatic stress coupled with grief and general depression. An expert says that most people recover within 6 months of a major event such as the tsunami but that 10% to 20% of people need up to several years to get past the disaster. (Source: TT commentary from theaustralian.com.au, Jun 17, 2011) http://bit.ly/m510qG -> Brand Off to IPO in Hong Kong? Perhaps indicating a move to off-shore IPOs, the used brand goods retailer, Brand Off, has said that it is considering doing an IPO in Hong Kong rather than Japan. The company got an early start in Asia and now has 9 stores in Hong Kong and Taiwan. The company will earn US$51m in sales in Hong Kong alone this year, and is planning to open its first store in China, in Shanghai, in August. (Source: TT commentary from channelnewsasia.com, Jun 16, 2011) http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/corporatenews/view/1135581/1/.html -> Nissan/JAF to offer EV roadside recharge service Nissan and the Japan Automobile Federation (JAF) have teamed up to offer Nissan Leaf EV owners a service that will ease the minds of many: a roadside battery recharge, just in case you're unlucky enough to run out of juice before getting home. No further details yet, but it looks like JAF vans will be fitted out with rechargers that pump enough power to get the customer's car to the nearest recharge station for a proper top up. The Leaf has a 150km range when charged for 7 hours from a 220V power connector (at home), or it can be brought up to 80% capacity in just 30 minutes with a special 80V quick charger. (Source: TT commentary from cnet.com, Jun 15, 2011) http://cnet.co/iBWa9j -> Consumer loans market shrinks by 30% Well the efforts of the nation's courts to curb rampant consumer loan companies and excessive interest rates seems to be working. According to the FSA, unsecured consumer loans fell about JPY3trn as of March 2011, versus a year earlier. In particular, the number of people with at least 5 multiple loans fell 40% to 690,000 by May. Although there were predictions of a surge in personal bankruptcies after the new lending restrictions came into being, this does not seem to have happened. Rather, the lending public have cut back and learned to adapt to the new rules. (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Jun 18, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110617D17JFA18.htm NOTE: Broken links Many online news sources remove their articles after just a few days of posting them, thus breaking our links -- we apologize for the inconvenience. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CANDIDATE ROUND UP/VACANCIES => BiOS, a Division of the LINC Media group, is actively marketing the following positions for customers setting up or expanding in Japan, as well as other employers of bilinguals. ** HIGHLIGHTED POSITION BiOS is urgently looking for an Enterprise Support Manager with experience managing overall customer support procedures of software product at our client?s office in Minato-ku area. The candidate will be responsible for liasing between internal engineering teams and corporate clients to ensure satisfaction of clients using company?s software services, as well as managing official documents (SLA, service catalogues, etc.) in order to provide quick and appropriate support to clients at all times. You will also be responsible for coordinating with internal project managers and engineers from software development teams to ensure special requests from clients are fully applied to their software development projects. Due to the technical nature and demanding work environment, this position is suitable for someone with solid experience as a customer support/service delivery manager in the embedded software industry, and having a strong knowledge of Linux products. In addition, since this role requires coordination with multinational team members, managers, and clients, business-level communications skills in English and fluent communications skills in Japanese will be required. Remuneration is JPY8m ? JPY11m depending on your experience and skill level. ** POSITIONS VACANT - Marketing Comms Specialist, global sw co, JPY6M ? JPY8M - Bilingual Helpdesk/Desktop Engr, ibank, JPY4M ? JPY5M - Senior Dev Engineer, global software co, JPY 8M ? JPY11M - Junior iPhone Dev, IT services co, JPY3.5M ? JPY4.5M - Sales Team Account Manager, BiOS, JPY4M ? JPY5M Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: tomohiro.kimura at biosjp.com ** BiOS Job Mail Every 2 weeks BiOS sends out a regular communication to its job seeking candidates, called BiOS Job Mail. Every edition carries a list of BiOS's current and most up-to-date vacancies, with each entry featuring a short job description and a direct link to the main entry on the BiOS home page. Regardless of whether you are unemployed and searching, thinking about a career change, or just curious to know if there is something out there that might suit you better, the BiOS Job Mail newsletter is an easy and convenient way for you to stay informed. If you would like to register for the BiOS Job Mail, or to find out more, please email kenji.sakota at biosjp.com. Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: tomohiro.kimura at biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ UPCOMING EVENTS/ANNOUNCEMENTS ---------------- CCH Labor Law Seminar -------------------- CCH Japan presents its 'Japan Labor & Employment Law Seminar 2011' Covered are the following key topics: - Avoiding HR Management pitfalls in your business - Dealing with salary reductions, poor performance, sexual harassment, bullying, creating work rules,etc. Date: Friday, 24th June 1:30pm-5:00pm Venue: Happo-en 5F Linden Room Language:English Speaker:Hideki Kano Attorney, Anderson, Mori & Tomotsune Fees: 20,000JPY+Tax Register: https://www.cch-japan.jp/contents/register/form Related Books: Japanese Labor & Employment Law and Practice 1st Edition (published 10th June) * Seminar participants qualify for special 10% discount! Contact: support at cch.co.jp, or 03-3265-1161. www.cch-japan.jp ----------------------------------------------------------- --------------- Start a Company in Japan ------------------ Entrepreneur's Handbook Seminar 16th of July, 2011 If you have been considering setting up your own company, find out what it takes to make it successful. Terrie Lloyd, founder of over 17 start-up companies in Japan, will be giving an English-language seminar and Q&A on starting up a company in Japan. This is an ideal opportunity to find out what is involved, and to ask specific questions that are not normally answered in business books. All materials are in English and are Japan-focused. Over 450 people have taken this seminar in the last 8 years, and approximately 20% have gone on to form companies. For more details: http://www.japaninc.com/entrepreneur_handbook_seminar ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CORRECTIONS/FEEDBACK In this section we run comments and corrections submitted by readers. We encourage you to spot our mistakes and amplify our points, by email, to editors at terrie.com. *** No corrections or feedback this week. *********************************************************** END SUBSCRIBERS: 8,857 members as of June 19, 2011 (We purge our list regularly.) +++ ABOUT US STAFF Written by: Terrie Lloyd (terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com) HELP: E-mail Terrie-request at mailman.japaninc.com with the word 'help' in the subject or body (don't include the quotes), and you will get back a message with instructions. FEEDBACK Send letters (Feedback, Inquiries & Information) to the editor to terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com. ADVERTISING INFORMATION For more information on advertising in this newsletter, Contact ads at japaninc.com. SUBSCRIBE Get Terrie's Take by giving your name and email address at http://www.japaninc.com/newsletters/free_sign_up, or go straight to Mailman at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ Copyright 2011 Japan Inc. Communications Inc. ----------------- Japan Inc opens up Japan ---------------- J at pan Inc is Japan's only independently published English- language business website. Authoritatively chronicling online the business trends in Japan, each posting brings you in-depth analysis of business, people and technology in the world's second largest economy. Visit www.japaninc.com for the best business insight on Japan available. ----------------------------------------------------------- -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From terrie at mailman.japaninc.com Sun Jun 26 23:15:29 2011 From: terrie at mailman.japaninc.com (Terrie's Take) Date: Sun, 26 Jun 2011 23:15:29 +0900 Subject: Terrie's Take 619 -- Teaching Scientists How to Communicate, e-biz news from Japan Message-ID: * * * * * * * * * T E R R I E 'S T A K E * * * * * * * A weekly roundup of news & information from Terrie Lloyd. (http://www.terrie.com) General Edition Sunday, June 26, 2011, Issue No. 619 +++ INDEX - What's New -- Teaching scientists how to communicate - News -- Boiling milliwatts as you make tea - Candidate Roundup/Vacancies - Upcoming Events -- Next Entrepreneur seminar - Corrections/Feedback -- How not to find shareholders - News Credits SUBSCRIBE to, UNSUBSCRIBE from Terrie's Take at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take, or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ ----------- UPGRADE TODAY TO PBXL IP TELEPHONY ------------ PBXL has the solution for your office. PBXL will purchase and dispose of your outdated, unsupported phone system and provide you with state-of-the-art Cisco VoIP telephony. Designed with scalable enterprise level functionality for companies ranging from two seats to two hundred, PBXL is the perfect cost-effective solution when opening an office, expanding a business, or rolling out a new BCP location. For additional information call us anytime at 03-4550-1600, e-mail us at info at pbxl.jp or visit http://en.pbxl.co.jp/ ------------ PBXL is BUSINESS COMMUNICATIONS -------------- +++ WHAT'S NEW Last week the academic world in Japan was in an uproar after it came out that Tohoku University's president, also a leading metallurgy scientist, Akihisa Inoue, had his 2001 contribution to a US academic publication called Applied Physics Letters (APL) retracted because a member of his research team had recycled part of a previous paper in the submission to APL. As reported in the Japan Times, the problem with this is that double publication causes the research group and in particular the lead scientist named at the top of the paper to be suspected of trying to get republished without doing any new research. Whether Inoue's team intended to subvert the principle of original research or not, it/he have almost certainly committed a serious breach of ethics which now has muddied both his personal international credibility and also his and the team's ability to get published again in the future. That could be quite serious for him, since academia in Japan is now moving more and more to tying funding to researchers' rate of being published. It will no doubt be argued that since the team member who wrote up the APL submission was not aware of a similar submission to another magazine, this was an innocent mistake and one that should not be punished further than the ignomy already caused. However, unfortunately for Inoue, and perhaps indicative of the state of affairs in Japanese academia at present, this is actually the second time for him to have a paper pulled, and so he is now connected with a pattern of behavior that will have consequences. This is a shame, because Inoue is apparently an innovative and dedicated scientist who in the 1990's was acknowledged as the most-cited materials scientist of that period. [Continued below...] -------- Remaining Partners for Tourist Web Project ------- Our many thanks to the 30+ partner candidates who have contacted us so far. The project is moving forward with great momentum and full project details are available for interested parties. We still have the following prefectures available: Aomori, Iwate, Akita, Yamagata, Fukushima, Niigata, Toyama, Gifu, Aichi, Mie, Kyoto, Yamaguchi, Tokushima, Kagawa, Kochi, Saga, Nagasaki, Miyazaki, and Kagoshima If you can write and market tourism for your prefecture, as part of a nationwide English-language tourism push under the Metropolis banner, then please email us today for our Powerpoint presentation. Initial project manager: terrie at metropolis.co.jp ------------------------------------------------------------ [...Article continues] But this hullabaloo may have an unintended good consequence, in that it could provoke a major shakeup of the attitudes and language capabilities of the Japanese scientific establishment as they are forced to come out of the domestic rabbit holes (the Galapagos syndrome) and compete on the world stage for coverage in leading publications. This pressure is being provided Chinese, South Korean, and Taiwanese scientists, who are much more comfortable working in English and interacting with the international science community. For much too long Japanese scientists have believed that their research is sufficiently unique and advanced that a simple translation of their paper or script is sufficient to address an international audience. However, this is clearly a wrong assumption since the way a Japanese presentation makes its points -- often half way through a paper and with abject modesty, is unlikely to earn any lasting recognition from a very bored or puzzled foreign audience. Indeed, the word "embarrassing" comes to mind. Consequently, despite the quality of the research, work done by Japanese scientists often gets overlooked internationally. As an example of how severe the problem of poor communication is, Japan leads in number of patents in solid waste management and is number two after the United States in air pollution control, water pollution control, medical technology, pharmaceuticals, and biotechnology. Yet despite these impressive accomplishments, the country lags in cited research or core articles in the same fields, not even making the top ten. So what's the solution? The best would be for the Education Ministry (MEXT) to pressure universities to start formal programs in scientific writing, presentation, ethics, and other communications and behavioral skills needed to survive and thrive in an international environment. Unfortunately this is not likely to happen in a hurry because the whole system is so inbred, and so scientists who are serious about their international standing and careers are having to take matters into their own hands by hiring private companies to tutor them. One such company is Think Science, a Tokyo-based company offering live training courses in scientific writing and coaching in making presentations. The company (www.thinkscience.co.jp) seems to be doing well, and counts many of the nation's major academic institutions as its clients. There are other players as well, but we are told that Think Science is the first to make major inroads on the side of live coaching of scientists on how to present and behave, rather than just provide rewriting/editing services. Back to the scandal. Inoue's case is probably just the tip of the iceberg -- certainly there is scope for lots of similar mistakes to be made because Japan's academic body is so large. According to the latest available data from the Japanese Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications there are approximately 827,300 scientists in Japan and this number has been rising 7 years in a row. In 2008 alone Japan spent JPY18.9trn (US$228bn approx.) on academic R&D, the eighth straight year of increase, so it is clearly time for the local scientific community to get serious about international best practice and standards -- and educating its leading thinkers that they have to change. Indeed, on the New Year's Day 2011 Eiichi Negishi who had received a Nobel Prize in chemistry, appeared on NHK's special series entitled "The Road to Japan's Survival 2011" and emphasized the need for Japanese scientists to become internationally viable. In his recently published best-selling biography Negishi (2010) proclaimed "Regardless of your field, your playground should be the world and your language should be English." [Ed: Our thanks go to Rinko Kawakami, associated with Kyushu University, who provided us with many of the key facts and issues in this Terrie's Take.] Lastly, if you want to know what the power usage is in the Tokyo area -- like maybe you need to use a dialysis machine or cook a chiffon cake or something and don't want an unexpected interruption, then you can check how close we are to power cuts by going here: http://setsuden.yahoo.co.jp/. ...The information janitors/ ***------------------------****-------------------------*** --------- BIOS - Bilingual IT Systems and Support --------- BiOS full-service IT solutions has a new service. Working with our fully licenced temporary dispatch group, we are now able to provide Japan in-country workers for companies not yet registered in Japan. This innovative service is available for companies needing to hire staff for Japanese customers, but who are unable to commit to the expense and infrastructure of maintaining an office in Japan. We take care of all aspects of the employment, contracting, and dispatch -- including management of the employee. Also, if you're thinking of Cloud office solutions, take a look at Microsoft's new Business Productivity Online Standard Suite. Terrie mentions Exchange Online in TT602, and we can do the same implementations for you. For more information on this and other SI and IT services, in English or Japanese: Phone: (03) 4588-2220, Email: solutions at biosjp.com Web: www.biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ NEWS - M&As up significantly in 2011 - Cloud apps company wins Microsoft partnership - Swedish truck maker to get better presence in Japan - Softbank and Orix to build digital signage exports - Boiling milliwatts as you make tea -> M&As up significantly in 2011 It looks like 2011 will the biggest year for M&As since 2005, and is approximately 80% ahead of the pace set last year. Of the total JPY7.56trn spent on M&A, about a half, JPY3.1trn, has been spent on foreign acquisitions. Experts are saying that the rate of acquisitions has notably increased since the March 11 earthquake and point to the fact that many firms believe things will get tougher in Japan. At the same time, there are apparently many private equity funds abroad sitting on assets acquired before the Lehman Shock, who are now looking to unload those investments. (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Jun 25, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110624D24JFF05.htm -> Cloud apps company wins Microsoft partnership Cybozu may not be a company you've heard much about, but this firm was one of the pioneers in the SaaS space, providing cloud-based productivity and groupware functionality long before Google and others. The company has however been extremely poor in marketing its solutions, and has also stayed in corporate groupware space rather than the higher profile B2C markets. Nonetheless, their dedication to making a good product even better appears to be vindicated as Microsoft has agreed to make them an option for the Microsoft SharePoint Server 2010 product line up from next week. Needless to say, Cybozu's share price went limit-up on the announcement. (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Jun 23, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110622D22JFA12.htm -> Swedish truck maker to get better presence in Japan Swedish truck maker Scania has announced that it is going partially independent of partner Hino, and setting up its own sales and service operation in Japan. Scania is apparently looking at niche markets within Japan for its heavy-duty trucks and power generation equipment. The company seems to think that there are opportunities for it in the post-recovery efforts up in Sendai and Tohoku. ***Ed: Gutsy move by Scania to separate with a heavy hitter like Hino. Will be interesting to see how this effort goes. If successful, it will no doubt become a textbook case study for MBA students.** (Source: TT commentary from scandasia.com, Jun 26, 2011) http://www.scandasia.com/viewNews.php?coun_code=se&news_id=9065 -> Softbank and Orix to build digital signage exports Softbank and leasing company Orix have announced that they will work together to build an intelligent digital signage business around East Asia over the coming years. The basic idea is that Softbank will make the digital signs and Orix will providing funding to operators to rent the sign displays. According to the Fuji Chimera Research Institute, sales of the digital signs market in Japan was about JPY75bn, and should be double that in 2015. ***Ed: Hmmm, we'd heard that Softbank's digital signage business was not doing well at all, so this East Asia push seems a bit like wishful thinking to us. Also, it's particularly hard to imagine that Japan's digital signage market is worth JPY75bn -- especially if it's only going to double in the following 5 years -- not exactly a high-growth market.** (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Jun 21, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110621D21JFF04.htm -> Boiling milliwatts as you make tea A cool new product recently launched by an Osaka firm produces electricity to recharge your iphone by boiling water in a cook pot that also includes a thermocouple to turn heat into power. The developer of the device is TES NewEnergy, and apparently the owner got the idea from watching tsunami survivors warming themselves over open fires in the days after the disaster. He thought a device that could power up their cell phones at the same time, especially in a disaster, would be popular. ***Ed: Certainly we think this is a great idea!** (Source: TT commentary from independent.co.jp, Jun 25, 2011) http://ind.pn/jyTOSP NOTE: Broken links Many online news sources remove their articles after just a few days of posting them, thus breaking our links -- we apologize for the inconvenience. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** ------------- Japanese Labor Law in English --------------- CCH is pleased to introduce the CCH NEW HR book written in English -- Japanese Labor & Employment Law and Practice, 1st Edition, published June 10, 2011, JPY22,050 (incl. tax) This book was revamped from the 'Japan Staff Employment Law Guide 1st Ed'. New amendments, additions and more details and precise information are available throughout all chapters. Page volume also increased by 100+ pages. Contact: support at cch.co.jp, or 03-6234-3980 Orders: https://www.cch-japan.jp/contents/register/form www.cchjapan.jp ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CANDIDATE ROUND UP/VACANCIES => BiOS, a Division of the LINC Media group, is actively marketing the following positions for customers setting up or expanding in Japan, as well as other employers of bilinguals. ** HIGHLIGHTED POSITION BiOS is urgently looking for a Vendor Management Contract Administrator with experience preparing IT procurement-related official documentation at our client?s office in the Shinagawa-ku area. The candidate will be responsible for assisting all of the company?s Japan office activities, such as managing and coordinating contract administration activities, as well as liaising with technical liaisons across all Japan office and client procurement services to ensure the timely completion of contract execution and renewal processes. You will also be responsible for working with client legal offices to ensure that the legal review/approval process is followed and deviations are approved where necessary. Due to the technical nature and demanding work environment, this position is suitable for someone with solid experience with administering technology-related contracts. In addition, since this role requires coordination with many of both internal and external teams/departments, including a legal department, business-level communication skills in English and native-level communication skills in Japanese will be required. Remuneration is JPY5m ? JPY6.5m depending on your experience and skill level. ** POSITIONS VACANT - MS Dynamics Specialist, BiOS, JPY6M ? JPY8M - Snr Account Exec., global media co., JPY4M ? JPY5M - iPhone Developer, IT services provider, JPY4M ? JPY5M - Web Development Proj Mgr, outsourcing co, JPY4.5M ? JPY6M - Sales Team Account Manager, BiOS, JPY4M ? JPY5M Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: tomohiro.kimura at biosjp.com ** BiOS Job Mail Every 2 weeks BiOS sends out a regular communication to its job seeking candidates, called BiOS Job Mail. Every edition carries a list of BiOS's current and most up-to-date vacancies, with each entry featuring a short job description and a direct link to the main entry on the BiOS home page. Regardless of whether you are unemployed and searching, thinking about a career change, or just curious to know if there is something out there that might suit you better, the BiOS Job Mail newsletter is an easy and convenient way for you to stay informed. If you would like to register for the BiOS Job Mail, or to find out more, please email kenji.sakota at biosjp.com. Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: tomohiro.kimura at biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ UPCOMING EVENTS/ANNOUNCEMENTS --------------- Start a Company in Japan ------------------ Entrepreneur's Handbook Seminar 16th of July, 2011 If you have been considering setting up your own company, find out what it takes to make it successful. Terrie Lloyd, founder of over 17 start-up companies in Japan, will be giving an English-language seminar and Q&A on starting up a company in Japan. This is an ideal opportunity to find out what is involved, and to ask specific questions that are not normally answered in business books. All materials are in English and are Japan-focused. Over 450 people have taken this seminar in the last 8 years, and approximately 20% have gone on to form companies. For more details: http://www.japaninc.com/entrepreneur_handbook_seminar ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CORRECTIONS/FEEDBACK In this section we run comments and corrections submitted by readers. We encourage you to spot our mistakes and amplify our points, by email, to editors at terrie.com. *** In TT617 we mentioned that we solicited investors through the Terrie's Take newsletter. One of our readers pointed out that there are strict rules in place about private solicitation of investors, and we agree that this is correct. We simply abbreviated the description of the process. For those thinking about engaging in similar marketing, if you want to speak to a body of potential investors at once, then you should look at the following guidelines. As always, this is not legal advice since we're not lawyers, and you should always get confirmation from a qualified lawyer before trying this at home. [A] Providing no information Have your company announce its plan to raise finance, and that it wishes to survey whether there is any market interest in such a program. In the survey, you would provide no specific information about the shares, and some information about the company. In your marketing, make a note that the ad is not solicitation to sell shares. People wishing to participate in the survey should contact an email address they can reach you at. [B] Providing info to small number of people Again, announce that your company plans to raise finance, and offer that only the first 50 respondents will receive details on the offer. This meets the up-to-50-people rule for private share offerings. Make a note that the ad is not solicitation to sell shares. people wishing to participate in the survey should contact an email address they can reach you at. *********************************************************** END SUBSCRIBERS: 8,862 members as of June 26, 2011 (We purge our list regularly.) +++ ABOUT US STAFF Written by: Terrie Lloyd (terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com) HELP: E-mail Terrie-request at mailman.japaninc.com with the word 'help' in the subject or body (don't include the quotes), and you will get back a message with instructions. FEEDBACK Send letters (Feedback, Inquiries & Information) to the editor to terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com. ADVERTISING INFORMATION For more information on advertising in this newsletter, Contact ads at japaninc.com. SUBSCRIBE Get Terrie's Take by giving your name and email address at http://www.japaninc.com/newsletters/free_sign_up, or go straight to Mailman at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ Copyright 2011 Japan Inc. Communications Inc. ----------------- Japan Inc opens up Japan ---------------- J at pan Inc is Japan's only independently published English- language business website. Authoritatively chronicling online the business trends in Japan, each posting brings you in-depth analysis of business, people and technology in the world's second largest economy. Visit www.japaninc.com for the best business insight on Japan available. ----------------------------------------------------------- -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From terrie at mailman.japaninc.com Mon Jul 4 00:15:01 2011 From: terrie at mailman.japaninc.com (Terrie's Take) Date: Mon, 4 Jul 2011 00:15:01 +0900 Subject: Terrie's Take 620 -- Is Our Food Supply Radiation Safe? e-biz news from Japan Message-ID: * * * * * * * * * T E R R I E 'S T A K E * * * * * * * A weekly roundup of news & information from Terrie Lloyd. (http://www.terrie.com) General Edition Sunday, July 03, 2011, Issue No. 620 +++ INDEX - What's New -- Is Our Food Really Radiation Safe? - Metropolis Members Club winners - News -- Nokia to Pull Out of Japan - Candidate Roundup/Vacancies - Upcoming Events -- Next Entrepreneur Seminar set - Corrections/Feedback -- Rule of Law finding a surprise - News Credits SUBSCRIBE to, UNSUBSCRIBE from Terrie's Take at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take, or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ ----------- UPGRADE TODAY TO PBXL IP TELEPHONY ------------ PBXL has the solution for your office. PBXL will purchase and dispose of your outdated, unsupported phone system and provide you with state-of-the-art Cisco VoIP telephony. Designed with scalable enterprise level functionality for companies ranging from two seats to two hundred, PBXL is the perfect cost-effective solution when opening an office, expanding a business, or rolling out a new BCP location. For additional information call us anytime at 03-4550-1600, e-mail us at info at pbxl.jp or visit http://en.pbxl.co.jp/ ------------ PBXL is BUSINESS COMMUNICATIONS -------------- +++ WHAT'S NEW Our breakfast most mornings, including this morning, is muesli, soy milk, yoghurt, and fruit -- followed by an apple and carrot juice chaser. But after today, we might be changing menus. You see, yoghurt = milk, fruit = berries, and carrots = root vegetables. All of these foods are considered greater-than-average sources of long-term radiation contamination, and all are under scrutiny in growing areas outside the Fukushima exclusion area. Why are we worried about food? It's been a series of things really. The first incident was when it was discovered in April that sludge pits from sewerage treatment plants in Tokyo were responsible for generating high levels of radioactive (Cesium) ash from their incinerators. The reading at one plant (Koto ward) was 170,000 becquerels/kg, well over normal, and the ash from that particular plant was recycled into construction materials such as cement. Authorities were quick to say that the sludge processed was found in March, and that by April the radiation readings at the same plant had dropped to about 5%-10% of the March levels. OK, that's all well and good, but: 1. While air readings of radiation levels showed no majorly abnormal levels of radiation in Tokyo post-explosion, how did such high levels of radiation turn up in Tokyo sewerage? 2. Worse still, how much radiation was re-distributed into the atmosphere while they were busy cooking the sludge into cement filler? [Continued below...] -------- Remaining Partners for Tourist Web Project ------- Our many thanks to the 30+ partner candidates who have contacted us so far. The project is moving forward with great momentum and full project details are available for interested parties. We still have the following prefectures available: Aomori, Iwate, Yamagata, Toyama, Yamaguchi, Tokushima, Kagawa, Kochi, Saga, Nagasaki, Miyazaki, and Kagoshima If you can write and market tourism for your prefecture, as part of a nationwide English-language tourism push under the Metropolis banner, then please email us today for our Powerpoint presentation. Initial project manager: terrie at metropolis.co.jp ------------------------------------------------------------ [...Article continues] The best explanation by authorities for the sludge radiation readings was that by virtue of the sewerage "cooking" process, radioactive nucleides, however sparsely dispersed and relatively safe as a result, would be concentrated once the food tissue holding them was consumed by humans and that waste accumulated. OK, so does that mean that those radioactive particles, no matter how few, traveled through the digestive systems of Tokyo residents? If so, that means lots of people including, 10m kids, had the possibility of DNA damage as it happened. Further, what about the fact that some of this stuff was pumped back up into the atmosphere for a second time in a more concentrated release, and what effect has that had? Actually, the sludge pit furor didn't last long, because the media had so many other Fukushima stories to to be distracted by. However, in late May a second incident occurred that further concerned us. It emerged that about a quarter of the green tea crop in Shizuoka (the prefecture produces 20% of all Japan's green tea) -- which is on the other side of Tokyo from the power plant -- was also contaminated and much of it will be destroyed. Given that the radioactive plume from the March power plant explosions was not supposed to have reached so far away in such concentrations, how has the radiation shown up in in the tea plantation? The authorities say that much like the sewerage, this is a case of sparsely distributed radioactive particles being concentrated in the collection and drying process. Whatever the reason, radiation is clearly now contaminating the food chain outside of Fukushima. Thankfully, the public is becoming so sensitized to the possibility of contamination, that occurrences like the tea crop are quickly detected, reported, and being dealt with. Then, in June a group of concerned parents in Fukushima, who it appears don't trust the government (we wonder why?) sent off urine samples to ACRO, a French independent radiation testing lab, and got them back last week with indications that some of the kids were running higher than normal (but not necessary injurious) levels of Cesium contamination. Authorities were quick again to point out that the kids are contaminated in small amounts and so were probably affected by the original set of March explosions at the plant. But what if the contamination wasn't a one off? What if those kids are being affected by an ongoing situation, such as what they are eating? Interestingly, ACRO also did testing on Belaurus residents after Chernobyl and found ongoing contamination because of the food system. Indeed, in April this year, Greenpeace issued a statement that hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians are still eating and being affected by food contaminated by Chernobyl 25 years after the meltdown there. In that report, Greenpeace said that milk, berries, potatoes, and other root vegetables in two regions near the exclusion zone (in Japan, think Fukushima city, 60km from the plant), still show "unacceptably high levels of the radioactive isotope cesium-137". In one village, milk samples had contamination up to 16 x greater than normal levels, a situation blamed on dairy cattle being fed contaminated hay. The current level of doubt and fear is of course wreaking havoc with consumers of high-value Japanese foods purchased overseas. Japanese apples are particularly popular in Taiwan, with about 17,000 tons shipped last year -- that's 90% of Japan's apple exports. In April, Taiwan banned food imports from five prefectures, including Fukushima, but unfortunately for Aomori apple growers, which isn't in the banned group but by association is still suspect as far as consumers are concerned, the total apple exports to Taiwan in May tumbled to less than one ton, about 0.1% of March's volume. These numbers show that this will be a disastrous year for the fruit export industry and indeed the entire food export sector in general. This is disturbing stuff, and whether or not there really is a serious problem in our food supply here in Japan, rather than be entertained by politicians and celebrities eating Fukushima tomatoes and other produce, we'd be more comforted by the government making a serious effort to address public fears. What is needed is a major coordinated and trustworthy study (i.e., involving outside agencies) coupled with a comprehensive radiation-related health check program so that the public can be reassured that their food sources are safe. ...The information janitors/ ***------------------------****-------------------------*** --------- BIOS - Bilingual IT Systems and Support --------- BiOS full-service IT solutions has a new service. Working with our fully licenced temporary dispatch group, we are now able to provide Japan in-country workers for companies not yet registered in Japan. This innovative service is available for companies needing to hire staff for Japanese customers, but who are unable to commit to the expense and infrastructure of maintaining an office in Japan. We take care of all aspects of the employment, contracting, and dispatch -- including management of the employee. Also, if you're thinking of Cloud office solutions, take a look at Microsoft's new Business Productivity Online Standard Suite. Terrie mentions Exchange Online in TT602, and we can do the same implementations for you. For more information on this and other SI and IT services, in English or Japanese: Phone: (03) 4588-2220, Email: solutions at biosjp.com Web: www.biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ NEWS - Nokia to pull out of Japan - LaSalle land deal biggest in two years - 19.4% of Japanese men may never get married - First day of compulsory power rationing incident-free - NZ used car business hit by Tohoku earthquake => Nokia to pull out of Japan Nokia never really got the Japanese market anyway, but now with global earnings on the skids, the company has decided to get real and pull out of the consumer market here. The company will apparently shut its high-end Vertu stores in Shibuya and Ginza by the end of July, then shut down its phone service by the end of August. The company will continue to handle refunds and other customer support until year end. ***Ed: If you were one of those people who spent JPY20m on a diamond encrusted Vertu phone, we'd be somewhat upset about this announcement...!** (Source: TT commentary from ibnlive.in.com, Jul 1, 2011) http://bit.ly/mhGzZb => LaSalle land deal biggest in two years According to sources in the property industry, LaSalle Investment Management is close to selling a large portfolio of industrial buildings to one of two funds: either Singapore's Global Logistic Properties, or Blackstone Group. The asking price is thought to be around ?140bn. Driving the acquisition is the ability for Tokyo prime property to still get reasonable yields. Apparently Tokyo residential gets yields of 4.5%~5%, compared to just 3% or less in places like Hong Kong. Interestingly, Tokyo had the highest land transaction volume, JPY1trn, in the first half of 2010 out of all the world's major cities. (Source: TT commentary from wsj.com, Jul 1, 2011) http://on.wsj.com/mf435J => 19.4% of Japanese men may never get married An Internal Affairs Ministry 2010 census report shows that amongst man aged 45-54 a full 19.4% were unmarried, while for women it was 9.8%. Further down the age scale, a surprising 46.5% of men aged 30-34 were unmarried and for women it was 33.3%. This high rate of unmarrieds is considered the main reason why Japan's birth rate is falling. Reasons given for late or non-marriage included inability to find a suitable partner, lack of income, and lack of a full-time job. ***Ed: What about Nintendo obsession?** (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Jul 2, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110702D01JFA16.htm => First day of compulsory power rationing incident-free Sasuga Nihonjin... with the chips down and the government asking everyone to do their bit to reduce power consumption in the TEPCO service areas, the level of power being used on the first day of compulsory power rationing was down 5.8% on the same time last year, even though the daytime temperatures were 3 degrees higher. As a result, power usage was 81.8% of capacity and no actual restrictions applied. The reduction was due both to the public responding to power saving measures, as well as large corporations moving production to early mornings and weekends, thus allowing peak demand periods to be avoided. (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Jul 2, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110701D01JFA15.htm => NZ used car business hit by Tohoku earthquake In this interconnected world of ours, events on one side of the globe can have unintended knock-on effects elsewhere. So it is in the used car business. There are not many countries in the world that drive on the left hand side of the road as Japan does, but New Zealand is one of them. As a result there has been a healthy export business of second hand cars bought by Kiwi dealers directly from Japanese car auction yards, but which is now severely disrupted as Tohoku residents scramble to replace the estimated 300,000 cars damaged by the tsunami. Dealers are saying that used car prices in NZ are expected to increase substantially from next year. (Source: TT commentary from 3news.co.nz, Jul 3, 2011) http://bit.ly/k4KOrY NOTE: Broken links Many online news sources remove their articles after just a few days of posting them, thus breaking our links -- we apologize for the inconvenience. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** ------------- Japanese Labor Law in English --------------- CCH is pleased to introduce the CCH NEW HR book written in English -- Japanese Labor & Employment Law and Practice, 1st Edition, published June 10, 2011, JPY22,050 (incl. tax) This book was revamped from the 'Japan Staff Employment Law Guide 1st Ed'. New amendments, additions and more details and precise information are available throughout all chapters. Page volume also increased by 100+ pages. Contact: support at cch.co.jp, or 03-6234-3980 Orders: https://www.cch-japan.jp/contents/register/form www.cchjapan.jp ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CANDIDATE ROUND UP/VACANCIES => BiOS, a Division of the LINC Media group, is actively marketing the following positions for customers setting up or expanding in Japan, as well as other employers of bilinguals. ** HIGHLIGHTED POSITION BiOS is urgently looking for an Account Manager with experience selling embedded software services to international corporations at our client?s office in the Minato-ku area. The candidate will be responsible for building relationships with both new and existing clients to close sales deals of the company?s product with high market share, as well as liaising with internal engineering and marketing teams in order to provide best and customized services to all clients. You will also be responsible for expanding network connections within the industry to promote products and services by attending trade shows, events, etc. Due to the technical nature and demanding work environment, this position is suitable for someone with solid experience selling embedded software services in Japanese market with proven sales records. In addition, since this role requires direct negotiations with both Japanese and international clients, business-level communication skills in English and fluent-level communication skills in Japanese will be required. Remuneration is JPY7m ? JPY11m depending on your experience and skill level. ** POSITIONS VACANT - Helpdesk Engineer, global med equip co, JPY4M ? JPY5.5M - MS Dynamics Specialist, BiOS, JPY6M ? JPY8M - Bank Operations Staff, global bank, JPY3.5M ? JPY4.5M - Project Manager (Mobile), global sw co, JPY 8M ? JPY11M - MAC Coordinator, global ibank, JPY4M ? JPY5M Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: tomohiro.kimura at biosjp.com ** BiOS Job Mail Every 2 weeks BiOS sends out a regular communication to its job seeking candidates, called BiOS Job Mail. Every edition carries a list of BiOS's current and most up-to-date vacancies, with each entry featuring a short job description and a direct link to the main entry on the BiOS home page. Regardless of whether you are unemployed and searching, thinking about a career change, or just curious to know if there is something out there that might suit you better, the BiOS Job Mail newsletter is an easy and convenient way for you to stay informed. If you would like to register for the BiOS Job Mail, or to find out more, please email kenji.sakota at biosjp.com. Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: tomohiro.kimura at biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ UPCOMING EVENTS/ANNOUNCEMENTS --------------- Start a Company in Japan ------------------ Entrepreneur's Handbook Seminar 16th of July, 2011 If you have been considering setting up your own company, find out what it takes to make it successful. Terrie Lloyd, founder of over 17 start-up companies in Japan, will be giving an English-language seminar and Q&A on starting up a company in Japan. This is an ideal opportunity to find out what is involved, and to ask specific questions that are not normally answered in business books. All materials are in English and are Japan-focused. Over 450 people have taken this seminar in the last 8 years, and approximately 20% have gone on to form companies. For more details: http://www.japaninc.com/entrepreneur_handbook_seminar ----------------------------------------------------------- ------------------- ICA Event - July 21 ------------------- Speaker: Kazuaki Hiraga, Senior Software Engineer, Basis Technology Title: 'Lucene/Solr Open-source Enterprise Search Engines' Details: Complete event details at http://www.icajapan.jp/ (RSVP Required) Date: Thursday, July 21, 2011 Time: 6:30 Doors open, Buffet Dinner included and cash bar Cost: 4,000 yen (members), 6,000 yen (non-members). Open to all. Venue: The Foreign Correspondents' Club of Japan http://www.fccj.or.jp/aboutus/map ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CORRECTIONS/FEEDBACK In this section we run comments and corrections submitted by readers. We encourage you to spot our mistakes and amplify our points, by email, to editors at terrie.com. *** In TT618 we mentioned a report by the World Justice Project where Japan was ranked 4th for rule of law out of countries globally. We admit that we were surprised ourselves by this ranking -- but the World Justice Project seems to be a kosher think tank, so who are we to second guess? => Reader response: Wow! All I can say is wow. I can give points for the fact it is a lawful country and the crimes seem to be under control. Because of the almost complete ineffectiveness of the litigation system other unofficial systems have taken their place. The sentinels make themselves seen to be busy, being extra severe with bicycle parking and moped traffic offenses while turning a blind eye to rohipnol robberies, sumo murders and hostess rapes. The probability is that the most effective policing is a system where Mr Plod is judge and jury. From this, then subtract the numbers of foreigner-related (as victim) crimes and YUP! it's a great system -- IF you are Japanese. If this makes for the 4th best system in the world, the baseline must be pretty skewed or else stop the world. I want to get off. *********************************************************** END SUBSCRIBERS: 8,862 members as of July 03, 2011 (We purge our list regularly.) +++ ABOUT US STAFF Written by: Terrie Lloyd (terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com) HELP: E-mail Terrie-request at mailman.japaninc.com with the word 'help' in the subject or body (don't include the quotes), and you will get back a message with instructions. FEEDBACK Send letters (Feedback, Inquiries & Information) to the editor to terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com. ADVERTISING INFORMATION For more information on advertising in this newsletter, Contact ads at japaninc.com. SUBSCRIBE Get Terrie's Take by giving your name and email address at http://www.japaninc.com/newsletters/free_sign_up, or go straight to Mailman at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ Copyright 2011 Japan Inc. Communications Inc. ----------------- Japan Inc opens up Japan ---------------- J at pan Inc is Japan's only independently published English- language business website. Authoritatively chronicling online the business trends in Japan, each posting brings you in-depth analysis of business, people and technology in the world's second largest economy. Visit www.japaninc.com for the best business insight on Japan available. ----------------------------------------------------------- -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From terrie at mailman.japaninc.com Mon Jul 11 02:27:35 2011 From: terrie at mailman.japaninc.com (Terrie's Take) Date: Mon, 11 Jul 2011 02:27:35 +0900 Subject: Terrie's Take 621 -- Tracking Future CEOs, e-biz news from Japan Message-ID: * * * * * * * * * T E R R I E 'S T A K E * * * * * * * A weekly roundup of news & information from Terrie Lloyd. (http://www.terrie.com) General Edition Sunday, July 10, 2011, Issue No. 621 +++ INDEX - What's New -- Tracking Future CEOs - News -- Another foreign parent loses child custody - Candidate Roundup/Vacancies - Upcoming Events -- Entrepreneur Seminar moved to Sept. - Corrections/Feedback -- Prosecutor tapes are loaded dice - News Credits SUBSCRIBE to, UNSUBSCRIBE from Terrie's Take at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take, or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ ----------- UPGRADE TODAY TO PBXL IP TELEPHONY ------------ PBXL has the solution for your office. PBXL will purchase and dispose of your outdated, unsupported phone system and provide you with state-of-the-art Cisco VoIP telephony. Designed with scalable enterprise level functionality for companies ranging from two seats to two hundred, PBXL is the perfect cost-effective solution when opening an office, expanding a business, or rolling out a new BCP location. For additional information call us anytime at 03-4550-1600, e-mail us at info at pbxl.jp or visit http://en.pbxl.co.jp/ ------------ PBXL is BUSINESS COMMUNICATIONS -------------- +++ WHAT'S NEW In the months leading up to the Annual General Meeting (AGM) of shareholders, which usually happens in June, Japanese companies like to announce senior personnel changes, and in particular if there is a new president. Traditionally the president selection process has been about as entertaining as watching paint dry. If the existing CEO was from the founding family, then you could bet a son, son-in-law, or someone else typically a male from the family would be a prime candidate for the position. But if the company was old enough that the family wasn't really involved any more, then depending on the type of company, the CEO successor would typically be an engineer (Hitachi was famous for this), or the CFO or someone in a bean counting or compliance position. The point is that everything was predictable, companies made enough money to afford such affectations as management inner sanctums, and only those on the inside would get promoted. Of course that all changed when Carlos Ghosn and some other foreigners started getting selected as CEOs so as to rescue terminally ill companies. And since you can't get much more radical than putting a foreigner in charge, companies are realizing the line has been crossed and other changes are also now acceptable to shareholders. [Continued below...] -------- Remaining Partners for Tourist Web Project ------- Our many thanks to the 30+ partner candidates who have contacted us so far. The project is moving forward with great momentum and full project details are available for interested parties. We still have the following prefectures available: Aomori, Toyama, Fukui, Yamanashi, Hyogo, Yamaguchi, Tokushima, Kochi, Saga, Nagasaki, Miyazaki, and Kagoshima If you can write and market tourism for your prefecture, as part of a nationwide English-language tourism push under the Metropolis banner, then please email us today for our Powerpoint presentation. Initial project manager: terrie at metropolis.co.jp ------------------------------------------------------------ [...Article continues] Thus, we are seeing the trend of younger more internationalized CEOs being promoted from outside the inner sanctum. These are guys who have done M&A deals that went extraordinarily well, or who have created major new domestic or international markets. The fact that this new breed managers being recognized for international accomplishments is interesting in and of itself, because traditionally getting posted abroad was a good way of derailing your career for 5-10 years. While you were dispatched to look after the USA or Europe, your colleagues and competitors for promotion would be cozying up to the Chief and leaving you behind in the promotion stakes. Indeed, a friend in a major company told us that once he'd been sent abroad for a second time, he knew that his career prospects at HQ were pretty much done. After realizing that, he made as much effort as he could to stay abroad continuously and to have a good time doing so. He focused on developing a broad personal network, and became an expert in foreign business at a macro level, and politics. This turned out to be a good move, because although he did return to Japan eventually, the top job never got offered and instead he kept his head down and retired on a modest pension. Then, after retiring he quickly found a position lecturing at a private university about international business. But we digress. There have been a number of interesting promotions in the last few months that demonstrate that these changes are real. Our first example is 49-year-old Yoshihito Yamada who became President of Omron on June 18th. Yamada was a mover and shaker on two fronts. Firstly, he helped build Omron's healthcare business, a new string to the control equipment maker's bow. Although just 10% of the group's overall consolidated sales, Healthcare controls and systems in 2009 made a big contribution of 25% of Omron's bottom line. The division got outclassed by the stupendous resumption of growth in Omron's core Industrial Controls business last year (FY2010), but obviously the earlier contribution didn't go unnoticed. Yamada was also apparently instrumental in increasing the European business during his tenure there, and he got Omron squarely into the huge Russian market. The Nikkei says that through connections he made personally, Omron now owns about 50% of the blood pressure monitoring equipment market there. In 2010, Europe accounted for 15% of sales and is growing. What's important for Omron about Yamada is that not only is he young and internationalized -- important virtues now that almost 50% of the company's sales are coming from overseas operations -- but also that he knows how to grow businesses from scratch. This ability to inject new and creative thinking, as well as some measured risk-taking, will be what sorts out the success stories from the also-rans amongst Japanese firms in the future. M&A is also an important strategy for Japanese firms looking for growth. The local markets are dying off, literally, and money is cheap. So it's no wonder that so many Japanese firms are out looking for other companies to take over and accrue revenues and profits to the parent P&L back in Japan. Getting an acquired company to work properly, especially when the M&A is in the billions of dollars range, requires special talent, and those managers who get it right are being rewarded accordingly. So our second example is Shiseido, which promoted 52-year old Hisayuki Suekawa to President in April. Suekawa was the prime architect behind Shiseido's JPY180bn takeover of US-based Bare Escentuals. This was the largest M&A deal that Shiseido had ever done, and it was quite risky because Bare Escentuals had already saturated the US market and wasn't likely to grow much further there, plus the firm distributed through non-standard sales networks -- something new to Shiseido. But since the deal was done almost 9 months ago, the merger of the two firms seems to be going well and as a result Shiseido has risen from 6th to 4th largest cosmetics company in the world. There are many other examples of young blood being brought in to take the helm. According to the Nikkei, 686 firms appointed new presidents in the first half of this year, with those having presidents in their 50's accounting for 46.8% of the total, about 5% more than this time last year. We think this internationalization and merit-based promotion trend is quite exciting, because it means that Japanese firms are becoming more competitive, and also more accessible. Management by inner sanctums runs on a sort of feudal logic that has no place in a contracting market like Japan -- in particular they are inaccessible to business partners with new ideas. But the new wave of presidents is much more likely to realize through experience that every person they meet and every presentation they receive may contain the seeds of a business improvement that pole vaults their companies back to market leadership again. For those of us who make a living out of bringing innovation to Japan, this is very good news. ...The information janitors/ ***------------------------****-------------------------*** --------- BIOS - Bilingual IT Systems and Support --------- BiOS full-service IT solutions has a new service. Working with our fully licenced temporary dispatch group, we are now able to provide Japan in-country workers for companies not yet registered in Japan. This innovative service is available for companies needing to hire staff for Japanese customers, but who are unable to commit to the expense and infrastructure of maintaining an office in Japan. We take care of all aspects of the employment, contracting, and dispatch -- including management of the employee. Also, if you're thinking of Cloud office solutions, take a look at Microsoft's new Business Productivity Online Standard Suite. Terrie mentions Exchange Online in TT602, and we can do the same implementations for you. For more information on this and other SI and IT services, in English or Japanese: Phone: (03) 4588-2220, Email: solutions at biosjp.com Web: www.biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ NEWS - Another foreign parent loses child and does jail time - High rate of company closures up north - Police website DDoS attacks traced to China - Gasoline demand expected to fall this summer - French oyster kit to Sanriku -> Another foreign parent loses child and does jail time A Mexican national was given a suspended 2-year jail term, after already spending eight months in detention (just like jail), for trying to kidnap his 1-year old daughter back from his estranged wife in Niigata. Just another in a series of similar incidents, the man tried to take matters into his own hands after becoming estranged from the wife and wanting to see his daughter. Apparently he broke in to the mother-in-law's home and was arrested shortly after. The mother-in-law claimed an injury causing up to 2 week's of treatment thereafter. ***Ed: This is what happens when there is no law to force separated couples into proper conciliation and shared child custody -- desperate parents, always the foreign parent, find themselves having to take desperate action. It's shameful that he was interred for eight months prior to the case coming to court, a low point in Japan's criminal system, and high time that Japan signs the Hague Convention on Child Abduction.** (Source: TT commentary from japantimes.co.jp, Jul 7, 2011) http://search.japantimes.co.jp/mail/nn20110707a5.html -> High rate of company closures up north A survey of 5,004 companies in Iwate, Miyagi, and Fukushima, conducted by credit rating agency Teikoku Databank in June, has found that as many as 48% of companies have either suspended operations, have gone out of business, or are otherwise not operating The largest portion of non-operational companies were those in the "unknown" category, being 36.1%, where the owners were generally not contactable. ***Ed: Given the stories of company owners staying behind until all staff had safely left the premises, it is highly likely that many of these people perished in the Tsunami.** (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Jul 8, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110708D08JFN02.htm -> Police website DDoS attacks traced to China Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks targeting the National Police Agency (NPA) website in September 2011 have been since investigated in detail by the NPA and it was discovered that the bulk of the traffic came from 25 Chinese IP nodes and 8 Japanese nodes that were servers compromised by hackers. The NPA has since made a request to the Chinese authorities and Interpol to track down the hackers involved. The DDoS attacks came after a hacking group in China threatened revenge on Japan for the arrest of a Chinese fishing boat skipper. (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Jul 7, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110707D07JF018.htm -> Gasoline demand expected to fall this summer All is still not well in the travel industry, as it has emerged that gasoline sales volumes are expected to fall by as much as 7% this year, the largest decline in the last 30 years. Oil industry analysts are saying that demand is way down as consumers cut back dramatically on driving in a bid to economize after the Tohoku earthquake. The situation has been exacerbated by the abandonment of weekend toll road caps of JPY1,000 -- indeed, in the weekend the cap was first removed, gasoline sales plummeted 18%. (Source: TT commentary from reuters.com, Jul 08, 2011) http://reut.rs/oNvTsc -> French oyster kit to Sanriku French oyster farmers have come to the aid of Sanriku farmers by sending a 7-tonne shipment of buoys, ropes, water-protective clothing, and other items needed to do oyster cultivation. The french farmers are from Brittany and Charente-Maritime, and say that they are repaying Japan for its help back in 1970 and 1990, when disease killed off much of the french stock, and Japanese farmers sent them oyster larvae to regenerate their populations. ***Ed: Nice to see this kind of directed aid coming in, and even nicer still the story behind it.** (Source: TT commentary from afp on Google, Jul 08, 2011) http://bit.ly/q7usOQ NOTE: Broken links Many online news sources remove their articles after just a few days of posting them, thus breaking our links -- we apologize for the inconvenience. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** ------------- Japanese Labor Law in English --------------- CCH is pleased to introduce the CCH NEW HR book written in English -- Japanese Labor & Employment Law and Practice, 1st Edition, published June 10, 2011, JPY22,050 (incl. tax) This book was revamped from the 'Japan Staff Employment Law Guide 1st Ed'. New amendments, additions and more details and precise information are available throughout all chapters. Page volume also increased by 100+ pages. Contact: support at cch.co.jp, or 03-6234-3980 Orders: https://www.cch-japan.jp/contents/register/form www.cchjapan.jp ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CANDIDATE ROUND UP/VACANCIES => BiOS, a Division of the LINC Media group, is actively marketing the following positions for customers setting up or expanding in Japan, as well as other employers of bilinguals. ** HIGHLIGHTED POSITION BiOS is urgently looking for an Account Manager with experience selling embedded software services to international corporations at our client?s office in the Minato-ku area. The candidate will be responsible for building relationships with both new and existing clients to close sales deals of the company?s product with high market share, as well as liaising with internal engineering and marketing teams in order to provide best and customized services to all clients. You will also be responsible for expanding network connections within the industry to promote products and services by attending trade shows, events, etc. Due to the technical nature and demanding work environment, this position is suitable for someone with solid experience selling embedded software services in Japanese market with proven sales records. In addition, since this role requires direct negotiations with both Japanese and international clients, business-level communication skills in English and fluent-level communication skills in Japanese will be required. Remuneration is JPY7m ? JPY11m depending on your experience and skill level. ** POSITIONS VACANT - Helpdesk Engineer, global med equip co, JPY4M ? JPY5.5M - MS Dynamics Specialist, BiOS, JPY6M ? JPY8M - Bank Operations Staff, global bank, JPY3.5M ? JPY4.5M - Project Manager (Mobile), global sw co, JPY 8M ? JPY11M - MAC Coordinator, global ibank, JPY4M ? JPY5M Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: tomohiro.kimura at biosjp.com ** BiOS Job Mail Every 2 weeks BiOS sends out a regular communication to its job seeking candidates, called BiOS Job Mail. Every edition carries a list of BiOS's current and most up-to-date vacancies, with each entry featuring a short job description and a direct link to the main entry on the BiOS home page. Regardless of whether you are unemployed and searching, thinking about a career change, or just curious to know if there is something out there that might suit you better, the BiOS Job Mail newsletter is an easy and convenient way for you to stay informed. If you would like to register for the BiOS Job Mail, or to find out more, please email kenji.sakota at biosjp.com. Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: tomohiro.kimura at biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ UPCOMING EVENTS/ANNOUNCEMENTS --------------- Start a Company in Japan ------------------ Apologies: The Entrepreneur's Handbook Seminar scheduled for July 16th has been postponed until September 10th due to low numbers registering. Those people interested in learning how to start a company, can apply for the September event by visiting the website here: http://www.japaninc.com/entrepreneur_handbook_seminar. ----------------------------------------------------------- ------------------- ICA Event - July 21 ------------------- Speaker: Kazuaki Hiraga, Senior Software Engineer, Basis Technology Title: 'Lucene/Solr Open-source Enterprise Search Engines' Details: Complete event details at http://www.icajapan.jp/ (RSVP Required) Date: Thursday, July 21, 2011 Time: 6:30 Doors open, Buffet Dinner included and cash bar Cost: 4,000 yen (members), 6,000 yen (non-members). Open to all. Venue: The Foreign Correspondents' Club of Japan http://www.fccj.or.jp/aboutus/map ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CORRECTIONS/FEEDBACK In this section we run comments and corrections submitted by readers. We encourage you to spot our mistakes and amplify our points, by email, to editors at terrie.com. *** In TT618 we mentioned a report by the World Justice Project where Japan was ranked 4th for rule of law out of countries globally. Here we have more feedback on that surprising finding. => Reader response: The piece doesn't report the basis or key factors for the ranking. Probably one key number is the 93-95% conviction rate in Japan. (the actual arrest rate is very much lower). And we know how easy it is for the police in Japan to brow-beat anyone charged into confessing -- which means they don't have to work so hard to find actual evidence to convict. That the prosecutors and police have, so far, only agreed (partially) to videotaping the actual confession itself, about 15 seconds in most cases they say, and not to anything that is said before is good enough reason to believe these conviction rates could radically change if complete interviews were taped as originally intended. My take on why the prosecutors have agreed to at least partial taping is that they feel if the jury can watch the charged person actually agreeing to the confession, the jury will more easily disbelieve any recantation and insistence that the confession was given under duress. I suspect the police and prosecutors have been practicing their "nice cop" table-side manners and are now feeling fairly confident that with these 15 second video clips they will get high audience (jury) approval ratings. Hmmm, could we have the beginnings of a new "reality-soap" show in the coming years? *********************************************************** END SUBSCRIBERS: 8,889 members as of July 10, 2011 (We purge our list regularly.) +++ ABOUT US STAFF Written by: Terrie Lloyd (terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com) HELP: E-mail Terrie-request at mailman.japaninc.com with the word 'help' in the subject or body (don't include the quotes), and you will get back a message with instructions. FEEDBACK Send letters (Feedback, Inquiries & Information) to the editor to terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com. ADVERTISING INFORMATION For more information on advertising in this newsletter, Contact ads at japaninc.com. SUBSCRIBE Get Terrie's Take by giving your name and email address at http://www.japaninc.com/newsletters/free_sign_up, or go straight to Mailman at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ Copyright 2011 Japan Inc. Communications Inc. ----------------- Japan Inc opens up Japan ---------------- J at pan Inc is Japan's only independently published English- language business website. Authoritatively chronicling online the business trends in Japan, each posting brings you in-depth analysis of business, people and technology in the world's second largest economy. Visit www.japaninc.com for the best business insight on Japan available. ----------------------------------------------------------- -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From terrie at mailman.japaninc.com Sun Jul 17 20:51:00 2011 From: terrie at mailman.japaninc.com (Terrie's Take) Date: Sun, 17 Jul 2011 20:51:00 +0900 Subject: Terrie's Take 622 -- Where to Find Safe Food, e-biz news from Japan Message-ID: * * * * * * * * * T E R R I E 'S T A K E * * * * * * * A weekly roundup of news & information from Terrie Lloyd. (http://www.terrie.com) General Edition Sunday, July 17, 2011, Issue No. 622 +++ INDEX - What's New -- Where to find safe food - News -- One STD you do not want to catch - Candidate Roundup/Vacancies - Upcoming Events - Corrections/Feedback -- Tracking milk sources - News Credits SUBSCRIBE to, UNSUBSCRIBE from Terrie's Take at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take, or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ ----------- UPGRADE TODAY TO PBXL IP TELEPHONY ------------ PBXL has the solution for your office. PBXL will purchase and dispose of your outdated, unsupported phone system and provide you with state-of-the-art Cisco VoIP telephony. Designed with scalable enterprise level functionality for companies ranging from two seats to two hundred, PBXL is the perfect cost-effective solution when opening an office, expanding a business, or rolling out a new BCP location. For additional information call us anytime at 03-4550-1600, e-mail us at info at pbxl.jp or visit http://en.pbxl.co.jp/ ------------ PBXL is BUSINESS COMMUNICATIONS -------------- +++ WHAT'S NEW On July 4th we wrote a piece joining the dots on radiation concentrations in places around Tokyo where there should not be any. It seemed to us that radioactive nuclides, like non-radioactive heavy metals, appear to be able to be concentrated under certain circumstances and therefore even though the atmosphere registers as clean, perhaps we should still be worried about our food supply. That article generated a lot of response, especially from readers with children, wondering what they could do to limit possible exposure to contamination. Normally we don't stick to a subject like this -- we like to move our focus around a bit. However, barely ten days after our Take, it emerged in the Japanese press that in fact cattle from Fukushima which tested clean on the outside were found to have 2,300 becquerels per kilo (2,300 bq/kg) of Cesium-137, about five times the legal limit, when slaughtered. What's worse, over one ton of the meat found its way into the food supply, being sold all over the country. Since then a number of other disturbing "finds" have arisen in the press, indicating that not only were there some very ill-informed decisions made by authorities as to what to do with animal products (meat, milk, fish) in the period immediately after the explosions at the Fukushima plant, but that there still seems to be some sleight-of-hand going on for government food health statistics. The latest thing to catch our attention, which we appreciate receiving from the well-informed folks at www.safecast.org, is the news that contaminated milk from Fukushima has been mixed with product at factories located as far north as Tohoku. So if you thought you were buying from a safe producing area, the milk authorities have had different ideas. [Continued below...] ----------------- Would You Write to Eat Out? ------------- Metropolis' www.metrodining.jp website is gaining followers at a prodigious pace, and we need more expertly written food reviews. If you can write, and if you eat out a lot anyway, just how many reviews of places you have already been to would you be willing to write, in return for a meal out for two as payment? We're interested to know the answer to that question and invite readers to contact us and share their opinions. Better still, if you would like to be a guinea pig in a new barter payment program we are considering for Metrodining.jp, then let us know that too. Contact us at terrie at metropolis.co.jp to kick things off. ------------------------------------------------------------ [...Article continues] This milk mixing revelation, so far unsubstantiated, comes from a Prof. Takeda in his blog, (http://takedanet.com/2011/07/post_088c.html), but it appears to be backed up by a Sankei newspaper article revealing that the authorities stopped monitoring Cesium levels at individual milk producers in April, and instead started monitoring cooling stations where the output comes from many farmers, including those from safe areas. Naturally the numbers were evened out and those farms with "hot" output were no longer obvious as they got diluted with less-contaminated product. Thus it was that on April 26 the ban on the sale of milk from Fukushima was lifted. If you want to see which brands have been engaging in this dubious practice, go here (sorry, many of the links from here on are in Japanese only: http://www.teppeinomori.com/201105/20110521001.htm) OK, so we have the authorities trying to keep the dairy business in Fukushima going through what we think is a quite unethical practice. We suppose that in a twisted logic sort of way, their rationale of diluting dirty product with clean makes sense, since it keeps radiation numbers below the limits. But would you drink it if you knew this? Our take on what to buy, what to avoid: 1. Leaf and Root Vegetables The advice we've had so far is to generally avoid any vegetables from Fukushima and possibly northern parts of Ibaraki. If you can't do this, and often vegetables are not labeled as to their source anyway, then you'll be wanting to eat veges that grow deeper in the ground (Cesium tends to stick to the top 5cm surface layer) or better still, eat hydroponically grown veges for a while. There is a plentiful supply of hydroponic Romaine lettuce, sprouts, rucola, sunny lettuce, and other veges. 2. Rice More concerning in a couple of months time will be new harvest rice. It seems that rice planting was given the go ahead in Fukushima after what appears to have been faulty soil testing procedures. The government cut-off for soil samples is 5,000 bq/kg of Cesium-134/137, and the Fukushima government was getting 4,000bq/kg in their samples. However, they were taking samples 5-15cm deep, while Cesium sticks to the surface. Apparently a rice farmer took a sample from the top 5cm of his land rather than below that depth and had it independently tested. He found it was contaminated to the tune of 35,000 bq/kg!!! Documented here. http://ameblo.jp/noukanomuko/entry-10926646707.html. Incompetence? Purposeful manipulation of the tests? Hard to say, but our advice about rice is clear. We would stock pile with last year's crop, before the new Fukushima product makes its way into the food system. Rice keeps forever in the fridge anyway, so we advise buying some month's supply and let the media do the sleuthing of whether or not the new season's product is safe or not. 3. Mushrooms We would stay away from mushrooms that come from Fukushima and any neighboring prefectures to the West and North -- since this is where the wind patterns blew some of the Cesium-137 from the explosions. Mushrooms with gills, such as shiitake, are apparently very efficient at absorbing nuclides due to their not having roots and stems. Wild mushrooms near Chernobyl are still showing up with contamination 25 years after the event. 4. Fruits The best thing about summer is peaches, and fall the apples -- two kings of Japanese fruit growing industry. Our guess is that only a small quantity of these fruits are grown in Fukushima and surrounds, and considering the volume you'd be eating they pose a low risk. However, berries of all types grown outdoors in and around Fukushima-ken should probably be avoided -- these are another source of contamination from Chernobyl experience. 5. Proteins Probably the biggest concern is about milk. As mentioned, it has come out that the milk authorities have been mixing Fukushima-sourced product with clean milk from other areas, presumably so as to dilute it. We ONLY buy milk that expressly says it comes from Hokkaido right there on the packet. Our rationale is that it would constitute false advertising if they were to mix it with product from somewhere else. Fukushima is a major producer of eggs and pork, which we would avoid for the time being, unless they're labeled as being from somewhere else, or are imported product. What to do with beef is less clear, despite the scandal over mixing contaminated product, because public awareness will probably keep supplier shenanigans to a minimum from now on. However, thanks to the fact that Japan imports so much of its food anyway, as one consumer said on TV recently, "If it's Aussie beef, I'll eat it." Yup, you have plenty of alternatives. Try Costco if you want foreign food. No one seems to know what to do about fish. Personally, we'd stay away from fish that obviously comes from the area, Sanma (Pacific Saury), etc. Instead, it's not that hard to stick to imported salmon, colder water fish such as Hokke (Mackerel) which comes from the Sea of Okhotsk, shrimp, and other varieties that are unlikely to be locally sourced. 6. Bread and Processed Soy Products Most of Japan's cereals are imported, particularly flour (wheat), so we think these products are safe. Soy on the other hand may wind up being a "mixed bag" (like milk?). Right now about 2/3 of Japan's soybeans come from abroad, primarily the USA and South America, but of the remaining 1/3, 25% comes from Tohoku. We don't know how much comes from Fukushima to the south, but our guess from agriculture production figures, is that it's not much. 7. Local Organic and Traceable Sources If you are particularly concerned about source of produce, then consider shopping online. If you use Radish Boya (http://www.radishbo-ya.co.jp), an organic food supplier which is extremely popular and well priced, they state where the food comes from. Lots of Ibaraki-ken sourced product, though, so we're not sure how good this is. Other prefectures where they appear to have contract farms producing in large volume are in Chiba and Gunma -- both of which had less exposure to the fall-out from the explosions. Radish Boya also tests its food for radiation and generally to date they have been reliable with food safety awareness -- their brand would be destroyed overnight if they weren't. 8. Kyushu sourcing If you are really concerned, then you could consider sourcing from Kyushu and other further locations. Here are some links to such sites. Again all in Japanese. http://www.green-grace.co.jp/ http://vegetaberus.com/?tid=1&mode=f7 http://www.k-vf.com/ Lastly, we wish to keep things in perspective. At the levels Cesium is being detected in our food in and around Tokyo (versus right next to the Fukushima plant), the situation appears to still be safe for adults. As an indication, the US government says that if 100,000 people were continuously exposed to a layer of soil with an initial average concentration of 1 pCi/g (by our calculations, about 37bq/kg) of Cesium-137, then 6 individuals would be predicted to die of cancer that could be related to the exposure. This compares to about 20,000 people who would die from other types of cancer (US average). The Japanese limit for food is 300 bq/kg, and in eating such food, you would be excreting most Cesium-137 nuclides within 30 days. ...The information janitors/ ***------------------------****-------------------------*** --------- BIOS - Bilingual IT Systems and Support --------- BiOS full-service IT solutions has a new service. Working with our fully licenced temporary dispatch group, we are now able to provide Japan in-country workers for companies not yet registered in Japan. This innovative service is available for companies needing to hire staff for Japanese customers, but who are unable to commit to the expense and infrastructure of maintaining an office in Japan. We take care of all aspects of the employment, contracting, and dispatch -- including management of the employee. Also, if you're thinking of Cloud office solutions, take a look at Microsoft's new Business Productivity Online Standard Suite. Terrie mentions Exchange Online in TT602, and we can do the same implementations for you. For more information on this and other SI and IT services, in English or Japanese: Phone: (03) 4588-2220, Email: solutions at biosjp.com Web: www.biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ NEWS - Rebuilding in Tohoku very slow - One STD you do not want to catch - Fall off in tourists is slowing - Reuters poll forecasts economic recovery - Youtube releasing foreign language subtitling feature -> Rebuilding in Tohoku very slow We speculated in a previous Terrie's Take that there would be little in the Tohoku rebuilding efforts for foreign building materials suppliers, and this has turned out to be the case for Japanese suppliers as well. Four months after the March 11 earthquake and tsunami, the Q1 contract value of public works projects actually dropped 5% over the same period in the previous year. Furthermore, there is apparently a glut of building materials that were stockpiled in anticipation of a building boom. Government plans for reconstruction have been delayed by the massive clean-up first required, and also the lack of local coordination available to get projects started. ***Ed: Understandable, in that many of the government personnel needed may not be alive any longer, but one has to wonder why the Central government can't get a proper plan in place quicker than this...?** (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Jul 12, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110712D12HH478.htm -> One STD you do not want to catch Researchers in Japan and Sweden have apparently discovered a new type of gonorrhea (VD) that is resistant to front-line antibiotics such as Cipro. The new strain is called H041 and it has shown up in Japan first. H041 appears to be untreatable, after tests with ceftriaxone -- the drug usually used for modern gonorrhea -- administered at 8x the normal dosage failed to have any effect. So far there have only been a few cases in Japan of H041, but fears are that it may spread quickly. (Source: TT commentary from npr.org, Jul 21, 2011) http://n.pr/oKyXHu -> Fall off in tourists is slowing The Japan National Tourism Organization (JNTO) has announced that the June drop off of tourists to Japan took a smaller fall of 36%, compared to the March-May period when the numbers were down 50%-60% (depending on the month). The JNTO says that the situation will continue to be dire until the Fukushima power plant is made safe. The organization also noted that despite numbers being well down, a quick recovery is possible, as evidenced by worse numbers (than this year) back in 2009 after the Lehman Shock, then the subsequent resurgence in 2010. ***Ed: Here's hoping that 2012 will be a strong year for Japan-bound tourism.** (Source: TT commentary from mainichi.jp, Jul 15, 2011) http://mdn.mainichi.jp/mdnnews/news/20110715p2g00m0dm015000c.html -> Reuters poll forecasts economic recovery A Reuters poll of 30 leading economists in Japan has found that the experts are predicting an economic recovery for the nation in the second half of this year. The outlook is for growth of 0.2% in this fiscal year through to March 2012, and 2.7% for FY 2012 ending March 2013. The fact that the nation is emerging from the disaster so quickly, with May factory output volumes jumping significantly is apparently taking finance people by surprise. Nonetheless, the economists have commented that things could be even better is political infighting was toned down. (Source: TT commentary from reuters.com, Jul 14, 2011) http://reut.rs/p1pCNe -> Youtube releasing foreign language subtitling feature YouTube has announced an automated foreign language service for more than 50 languages, including Japanese. Apparently the software analyzes speech in the videos and displays captions in that language below. Once the captions are created, users can search for video content based on the words thus subtitled. ***Ed: Of course the holy grail will be if they create automated translations of the captions, so that foreigners can watch Japanese talk shows... ;-).** (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.co.jp, Jul 15, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110715D15JFN02.htm NOTE: Broken links Many online news sources remove their articles after just a few days of posting them, thus breaking our links -- we apologize for the inconvenience. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** ------------- Japanese Labor Law in English --------------- CCH is pleased to introduce the CCH NEW HR book written in English -- Japanese Labor & Employment Law and Practice, 1st Edition, published June 10, 2011, JPY22,050 (incl. tax) This book was revamped from the 'Japan Staff Employment Law Guide 1st Ed'. New amendments, additions and more details and precise information are available throughout all chapters. Page volume also increased by 100+ pages. Contact: support at cch.co.jp, or 03-6234-3980 Orders: https://www.cch-japan.jp/contents/register/form www.cchjapan.jp ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CANDIDATE ROUND UP/VACANCIES => BiOS, a Division of the LINC Media group, is actively marketing the following positions for customers setting up or expanding in Japan, as well as other employers of bilinguals. ** HIGHLIGHTED POSITION BiOS is urgently looking for a Helpdesk Engineer with experience in providing IT support to end users in the office of our clients in the Minato-ku area. A candidate will be responsible for providing level 1 and 2 support to approximately 300 end users who are predominately Japanese as well as providing ad-hoc support to engineers who provide level 3 support. You will also be responsible for creating workflow manuals for IT team and end-users. Due to the technical nature and demanding work environment, this position is suitable for someone with solid experience as a helpdesk or desktop engineer supporting day-to-day office environment. In addition, since this role requires extensive communications with IT engineers and end-users in English, daily conversational-level communication skill in English and native-level communication skill in Japanese are required. Remuneration is JPY3.5m ? JPY4.5m depending on your experience and skill level. ** POSITIONS VACANT - IMAC Engineer, global ibank, JPY4M ? JPY5M - Project Mgr, global LCD/ceramics maker, JPY8M ? JPY11M - Smart Phone Game Developer, IT co, JPY5M ? JPY9M - Technical Account Manager, software co, JPY7M ? JPY11M - Enterprise Support Manager, software co, JPY8M ? JPY11M Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: tomohiro.kimura at biosjp.com ** BiOS Job Mail Every 2 weeks BiOS sends out a regular communication to its job seeking candidates, called BiOS Job Mail. Every edition carries a list of BiOS's current and most up-to-date vacancies, with each entry featuring a short job description and a direct link to the main entry on the BiOS home page. Regardless of whether you are unemployed and searching, thinking about a career change, or just curious to know if there is something out there that might suit you better, the BiOS Job Mail newsletter is an easy and convenient way for you to stay informed. If you would like to register for the BiOS Job Mail, or to find out more, please email kenji.sakota at biosjp.com. Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: tomohiro.kimura at biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ UPCOMING EVENTS/ANNOUNCEMENTS --------------- Start a Company in Japan ------------------ Apologies: The Entrepreneur's Handbook Seminar scheduled for July 16th has been postponed until September 10th due to low numbers registering. Those people interested in learning how to start a company, can apply for the September event by visiting the website here: http://www.japaninc.com/entrepreneur_handbook_seminar. ----------------------------------------------------------- ------------------- ICA Event - July 21 ------------------- Speaker: Kazuaki Hiraga, Senior Software Engineer, Basis Technology Title: 'Lucene/Solr Open-source Enterprise Search Engines' Details: Complete event details at http://www.icajapan.jp/ (RSVP Required) Date: Thursday, July 21, 2011 Time: 6:30 Doors open, Buffet Dinner included and cash bar Cost: 4,000 yen (members), 6,000 yen (non-members). Open to all. Venue: The Foreign Correspondents' Club of Japan http://www.fccj.or.jp/aboutus/map ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CORRECTIONS/FEEDBACK In this section we run comments and corrections submitted by readers. We encourage you to spot our mistakes and amplify our points, by email, to editors at terrie.com. *** More on tracking food sources... => Reader contribution: I just wanted to add a comment about the safety of the food here in Tokyo. I share your concern, particularly about foods such as dairy products. Yoghurt is also an important part of my diet, so I have taken to making my own. It does take some extra effort to find milk from areas that are distant from the obviously radiation-affected areas. And I guess there is still an issue of how far away is far enough and whether the factory uses milk only from the region where the factory is located. As an aside, I am not sure if this is well known (it was new to me), but the location of the factory where the milk was produced/processed is "coded" onto the imprint of the expiry date at the top of the milk carton. You will see a two (or three) character code, such as "KT" (one of the characters may be a kana character) at the end of the imprint. This is a code specified by the company indicating where the product was processed. For example, Meiji Milk with the KT code is processed in their Tohoku Factory in Miyagi Prefecture. I have not seen any information on this in English. Someone has put together a Wiki in Japanese for these codes organized by various food products and by manufacturer. http://www45.atwiki.jp/seizousho/pages/47.html Back to yoghurt, the culture for yoghurt is available in a number of supermarkets, often in the same area that yoghurt is found, but it may be in another section. The type I see most often is for "Caspian Sea" yoghurt from Fujicco. The process to make it is simple, just add the culture to milk in a container that you sterilized with boiling water and let it stand at room temperature for the recommended time. Then refrigerate and consume within the recommended time. With the heat we are getting these days, turning the milk into yoghurt should take no time at all! ;-) Just wanted to add one thing. In some cases, I have seen the production plant location printed directly on the product label area, above the company address. In such a case there has been no code on the imprint at the top. I guess this is when the product only comes out of that one plant, so they can print up the cartons with the location directly on the label. *********************************************************** END SUBSCRIBERS: 8,893 members as of July 17, 2011 (We purge our list regularly.) +++ ABOUT US STAFF Written by: Terrie Lloyd (terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com) HELP: E-mail Terrie-request at mailman.japaninc.com with the word 'help' in the subject or body (don't include the quotes), and you will get back a message with instructions. FEEDBACK Send letters (Feedback, Inquiries & Information) to the editor to terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com. ADVERTISING INFORMATION For more information on advertising in this newsletter, Contact ads at japaninc.com. SUBSCRIBE Get Terrie's Take by giving your name and email address at http://www.japaninc.com/newsletters/free_sign_up, or go straight to Mailman at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ Copyright 2011 Japan Inc. Communications Inc. ----------------- Japan Inc opens up Japan ---------------- J at pan Inc is Japan's only independently published English- language business website. Authoritatively chronicling online the business trends in Japan, each posting brings you in-depth analysis of business, people and technology in the world's second largest economy. Visit www.japaninc.com for the best business insight on Japan available. ----------------------------------------------------------- -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From terrie at mailman.japaninc.com Mon Jul 25 01:06:40 2011 From: terrie at mailman.japaninc.com (Terrie's Take) Date: Mon, 25 Jul 2011 01:06:40 +0900 Subject: Terrie's Take 623 -- Toyota-Tesla Deal Goes Deep, e-biz news from Japan Message-ID: * * * * * * * * * T E R R I E 'S T A K E * * * * * * * A weekly roundup of news & information from Terrie Lloyd. (http://www.terrie.com) General Edition Sunday, July 24, 2011, Issue No. 623 +++ INDEX - What's New -- Toyota-Tesla Deal Goes Deep - News -- Metropolitan government to go thermal - Candidate Roundup/Vacancies - Upcoming Events - Corrections/Feedback -- Where is Fukushima? - News Credits SUBSCRIBE to, UNSUBSCRIBE from Terrie's Take at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take, or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ ----------- UPGRADE TODAY TO PBXL IP TELEPHONY ------------ PBXL has the solution for your office. PBXL will purchase and dispose of your outdated, unsupported phone system and provide you with state-of-the-art Cisco VoIP telephony. Designed with scalable enterprise level functionality for companies ranging from two seats to two hundred, PBXL is the perfect cost-effective solution when opening an office, expanding a business, or rolling out a new BCP location. For additional information call us anytime at 03-4550-1600, e-mail us at info at pbxl.jp or visit http://en.pbxl.co.jp/ ------------ PBXL is BUSINESS COMMUNICATIONS -------------- +++ WHAT'S NEW On July 21st a big question that must have troubled real estate developers in the San Francisco Bay Area for the last year was answered: "How was it possible for Tesla Motors to buy the shuttered 200-acre New United Motors Manufacturing, Inc. (NUMMI, Toyota's failed j/v with GM) plant in Fremont, complete with buildings, for just US$42m from Toyota?" They would have been troubled because the prior to the sale, the Alameda County Assessor had the land plus an adjoining 160 acres valued at US$159m, and plant and equipment at US$911m -- yielding a total capital valuation of US$1.07bn. Basically, the NUMMI plant sale has been one huge capital loss for Toyota... Our Take, and it's pure speculation mind you, is that the answer came in the form of an announcement mid-this week from Tesla that it has inked a 3-year deal to supply Toyota with US$100m of power train components for Toyota's 2012 all-Electric Vehicle (EV) RAV4, which journalists have been favorably road testing. In other words Tesla and Toyota are now revealing a depth of collaboration that belies the paltry US$50m that Toyota initially invested for 2.9% of Tesla back in May 2010, and which puts the NUMMI land deal into perspective: the two companies are moving much closer together. Actually the rapidly evolving development of the Toyota-Tesla relationship is quite interesting, not only because it shows that Toyota is hedging its bets on EVs, but also because it speaks to the prowess and marketing capabilities of Tesla's founder and board to leverage a potential dot.com-style bomb into a highly valued IPO in June 2010. The valuation of that IPO, which came in at around US$2.2bn, or US$22.89 per share, created about US$250m in much needed cash for the company. [Continued below...] ----------------- Would You Write to Eat Out? ------------- Metropolis' www.metrodining.jp website is gaining followers at a prodigious pace, and we need more expertly written food reviews. If you can write, and if you eat out a lot anyway, just how many reviews of places you have already been to would you be willing to write, in return for a meal out for two as payment? We're interested to know the answer to that question and invite readers to contact us and share their opinions. Better still, if you would like to be a guinea pig in a new barter payment program we are considering for Metrodining.jp, then let us know that too. Contact us at terrie at metropolis.co.jp to kick things off. ------------------------------------------------------------ [...Article continues] There have been three elements to this Toyota-Tesla deal which that we find interesting. Firstly there is the land deal. One wonders how Toyota will account for the large capital loss, especially since even the land itself sold for half the going rate and fortuitously gave Tesla a manufacturing plant that it could never build for itself. Perhaps one hint is to be found in a 2009 GM announcement saying that that previous NUMMI joint partner expected major costs related to environmental cleanup of the site. So by selling the plant on to Tesla, Toyota could say that it was dodging this bullet. Certainly it's a convenient way to pass on an asset to a pal. Secondly, there is the fact that Toyota's arrival to invest in Tesla last year significantly changed Tesla's chances of a successful IPO. Tesla filed in January 2010 to IPO, but had to file two amendments over succeeding months -- presumably because investors weren't giving the company much love, before landing the Toyota investment and subsequently doing a very successfully IPOing several months later. A J.D. Power & Associates Senior Manager said in 2010 that the Tesla valuation, at about 3x the valuation ratio of traditional car makers such as Nissan, reflected Tesla being viewed as a battery and technology firm rather than a car maker, but nonetheless agreed that the valuation was probably high. He also added that the loan award from the Department of Energy, along with the Toyota investment, were important in making "investors see Tesla as a safe play". So we can see how important the Toyota investment was -- and the question is: how much leverage has that bought Toyota today? Thirdly there is the whole issue of whether or not Toyota got into the Tesla deal because it is trying to atone at some level for the wrath caused over the shutting down of the NUMMI plant in 2009 and further the way it handled the sticking gas pedal situation in the USA last year. We're not big on conspiracies but they can be entertaining. Go here for an fairly long but well informed viewpoint of an activist blogger who feels Toyota was on the receiving end of some local US politics. http://bit.ly/aFxTei. Whatever the motives behind the Toyota-Tesla deal, it has now become a very real relationship and one that will boost the arrival of EVs to the ordinary man-in-the-street. So far only Tesla has really economically solved the Lithium-ion energy-density problem (although Nissan is well on the way) thanks to the pragmatic solution of using 6,800 commercially available 18650 cells (slightly larger than standard AA batteries) and ganging them up in huge arrays. Our understanding is that they have quite strong patents around this technology and that is worth a 3-5 year head start for whomever has access to such technology -- such as the investors and any sweetheart deals they can extract from Tesla the patent holder. Toyota is no fool in terms of hedging risks, and is probably very concerned that it doesn't let Nissan with its Leaf vehicle get too far ahead of them. If Toyota was to have developed its own battery system, drive train, and the other components that it is buying from Tesla, it would be spending hundreds of millions of dollars and would still be 2-3 years behind the leaders. Furthermore, as we have hinted above, there is probably a lot more to this deal than meets the eye. Whether Toyota is getting a billion dollars of value out of the EV components and the profit they help generate we don't know, but if not, then it will almost certainly be because they are getting equivalent but less obvious value out of some other part of the deal. ...The information janitors/ ***------------------------****-------------------------*** --------- BIOS - Bilingual IT Systems and Support --------- BiOS full-service IT solutions has a new service. Working with our fully licenced temporary dispatch group, we are now able to provide Japan in-country workers for companies not yet registered in Japan. This innovative service is available for companies needing to hire staff for Japanese customers, but who are unable to commit to the expense and infrastructure of maintaining an office in Japan. We take care of all aspects of the employment, contracting, and dispatch -- including management of the employee. Also, if you're thinking of Cloud office solutions, take a look at Microsoft's new Business Productivity Online Standard Suite. Terrie mentions Exchange Online in TT602, and we can do the same implementations for you. For more information on this and other SI and IT services, in English or Japanese: Phone: (03) 4588-2220, Email: solutions at biosjp.com Web: www.biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ NEWS - Metropolitan government to go thermal - Takeda saved from diabetic episode - Menopause herb fails to make the grade - Did you know this about Edison? - Unexpected trade surplus for April-June quarter -> Metropolitan government to go thermal Showing echoes of his political abilities, Tokyo Governor Ishihara has announced that the Metropolitan government will build and operate its own natural gas-powered power plant, capable of producing about 1GW of electricity [Ed: we think Nikkei number of 1MW is wrong -- JiJi says 1m x 1KW). Ishihara reckoned this would be equivalent to one nuclear reactor and would cost around JPY50bn to build. ***Ed: Hopefully this goes better than his Metro-owned bank did...** (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Jul 23, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/fr/tnks/Nni20110723D23JF451.htm -> Takeda saved from diabetic episode Takeda Pharma may have been saved from a catastrophic hit to its business after French reports that its leading diabetes drug Actos, responsible for 30% of its total sales, may cause bladder cancer. The company has received permission from the US-based FDA and the European Medicines Agency to continue selling the drug, providing it is sold with a warning to doctors in the product explanation. Previously the company had been threatened with a product recall. (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Jul 23, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110722D22JFA13.htm -> Menopause herb fails to make the grade A herbal preparation called keishi bukuryogan, which is available by prescription in Japan and is popular in treating women suffering hot flushes due to menopause, has failed to show any attributable medical effects in trials conducted in the USA. The trials were run by researchers at the Abbott Northwestern Hospital in Minneapolis. The preparation consists of a mix of cinnamon bark, peach pit and several other herbs. (Source: TT commentary from reuters.com, Jul 07, 2011) http://reut.rs/nToo7P -> Did you know this about Edison? A short article run on the Cleveland Plain Dealer web site points out that Thomas Edison's first successful light bulb was powered by carbonized bamboo filaments sourced from a village in Kyoto-fu, called Yawata. From this early connection between Japan and the USA in the 1880's, Edison "mania" is apparently still alive and well in Japan and Japanese make up the largest number of visitors to Edison's boyhood home in Milan, Ohio every year. Furthermore, for the last 26 years, Yawata has been the sister city of Milan.** (Source: TT commentary from cleveland.com, Jul 07, 2011) http://blog.cleveland.com/metro/2011/07/thomas_edisons_legacy_still_bu.html -> Unexpected trade surplus for April-June quarter Market analysts were expecting the knock-on effects of the March 11 disaster to last for some months, but in a demonstration of resilience, Japan posted a surprise trade surplus in June of JPY70.7bn. To be sure, this was 90% less than the year earlier, but was still quite unexpected. The expectation now is that the recovery will be slow and hampered by power and high yen issues, but should continue. Most of the June gain was attributed to increases in exports to China and Europe. (Source: TT commentary from afp news on Google, Jun 21, 2011) http://bit.ly/oBOW0k NOTE: Broken links Many online news sources remove their articles after just a few days of posting them, thus breaking our links -- we apologize for the inconvenience. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** ------------- Japanese Labor Law in English --------------- CCH is pleased to introduce the CCH NEW HR book written in English -- Japanese Labor & Employment Law and Practice, 1st Edition, published June 10, 2011, JPY22,050 (incl. tax) This book was revamped from the 'Japan Staff Employment Law Guide 1st Ed'. New amendments, additions and more details and precise information are available throughout all chapters. Page volume also increased by 100+ pages. Contact: support at cch.co.jp, or 03-6234-3980 Orders: https://www.cch-japan.jp/contents/register/form www.cchjapan.jp ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CANDIDATE ROUND UP/VACANCIES => BiOS, a Division of the LINC Media group, is actively marketing the following positions for customers setting up or expanding in Japan, as well as other employers of bilinguals. ** HIGHLIGHTED POSITION BiOS is urgently looking for an Project Manager with experience managing large projects with both business and technology side of insurance companies at our client?s office in Tokyo area. The candidate will be responsible for taking control of projects mainly focused on software development related to insurance, as well as getting involved in actively maintaining the project portfolio, handling project governance frameworks, and undertaking activities to strengthen the project management office. You will also be responsible for leading cross-functional project teams to deliver business critical projects (e.g. product launches, operations improvements, etc.). Due to the technical nature and demanding work environment, this position is suitable for someone with solid experience managing insurance-related technologies and business. In addition, since this role requires communication with international members, clients, and vendors, business-level communication skills in English and fluent-level communication skills in Japanese will be required. Remuneration is JPY7m ? JPY11m depending on your experience and skill level. ** POSITIONS VACANT - Enterprise Support Mgr, global sw co, JPY8M ? JPY11M - Smart Phone Game Developer, global IT co, JPY5M ? JPY9M - Web Designer (P/Time), outsourcing co., JPY2.5M ? JPY3.5M - MAC Coordinator, global ibank, JPY4M ? JPY5M - Vendor Manager, global insurance co, JPY 8M ? JPY11M Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: tomohiro.kimura at biosjp.com ** BiOS Job Mail Every 2 weeks BiOS sends out a regular communication to its job seeking candidates, called BiOS Job Mail. Every edition carries a list of BiOS's current and most up-to-date vacancies, with each entry featuring a short job description and a direct link to the main entry on the BiOS home page. Regardless of whether you are unemployed and searching, thinking about a career change, or just curious to know if there is something out there that might suit you better, the BiOS Job Mail newsletter is an easy and convenient way for you to stay informed. If you would like to register for the BiOS Job Mail, or to find out more, please email kenji.sakota at biosjp.com. Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: tomohiro.kimura at biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ UPCOMING EVENTS/ANNOUNCEMENTS --------------- Start a Company in Japan ------------------ Entrepreneur's Handbook Seminar 16th of July, 2011 If you have been considering setting up your own company, find out what it takes to make it successful. Terrie Lloyd, founder of over 17 start-up companies in Japan, will be giving an English-language seminar and Q and A on starting up a company in Japan. This is an ideal opportunity to find out what is involved, and to ask specific questions that are not normally answered in business books. All materials are in English and are Japan-focused. For more details: http://www.japaninc.com/entrepreneur_handbook_seminar ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CORRECTIONS/FEEDBACK In this section we run comments and corrections submitted by readers. We encourage you to spot our mistakes and amplify our points, by email, to editors at terrie.com. *** More on tracking food sources... => Reader contribution: A bit nit picky I guess but Fukushima IS in Tohoku, it is north of Tochigi which is in Kanto. Not sure where you think it is, but you kept referring to Tohoku as north of Fukushima. *** You're quite right -- our apologies to readers who may have been wondering. Thanks for pointing this out. *********************************************************** END SUBSCRIBERS: 8,903 members as of July 24, 2011 (We purge our list regularly.) +++ ABOUT US STAFF Written by: Terrie Lloyd (terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com) HELP: E-mail Terrie-request at mailman.japaninc.com with the word 'help' in the subject or body (don't include the quotes), and you will get back a message with instructions. FEEDBACK Send letters (Feedback, Inquiries & Information) to the editor to terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com. ADVERTISING INFORMATION For more information on advertising in this newsletter, Contact ads at japaninc.com. SUBSCRIBE Get Terrie's Take by giving your name and email address at http://www.japaninc.com/newsletters/free_sign_up, or go straight to Mailman at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ Copyright 2011 Japan Inc. Communications Inc. ----------------- Japan Inc opens up Japan ---------------- J at pan Inc is Japan's only independently published English- language business website. Authoritatively chronicling online the business trends in Japan, each posting brings you in-depth analysis of business, people and technology in the world's second largest economy. Visit www.japaninc.com for the best business insight on Japan available. ----------------------------------------------------------- -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From terrie at mailman.japaninc.com Sun Jul 31 22:19:04 2011 From: terrie at mailman.japaninc.com (Terrie's Take) Date: Sun, 31 Jul 2011 22:19:04 +0900 Subject: Terrie's Take 624 -- Is Rakuten Over-extending? e-biz news from Japan Message-ID: * * * * * * * * * T E R R I E 'S T A K E * * * * * * * A weekly roundup of news & information from Terrie Lloyd. (http://www.terrie.com) General Edition Sunday, July 31, 2011, Issue No. 624 +++ INDEX - What's New -- Is Rakuten Over-extending? - News -- Jump in single-person households a social problem - Candidate Roundup/Vacancies - Upcoming Events - Corrections/Feedback - News Credits SUBSCRIBE to, UNSUBSCRIBE from Terrie's Take at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take, or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ ----------- UPGRADE TODAY TO PBXL IP TELEPHONY ------------ PBXL has the solution for your office. PBXL will purchase and dispose of your outdated, unsupported phone system and provide you with state-of-the-art Cisco VoIP telephony. Designed with scalable enterprise level functionality for companies ranging from two seats to two hundred, PBXL is the perfect cost-effective solution when opening an office, expanding a business, or rolling out a new BCP location. For additional information call us anytime at 03-4550-1600, e-mail us at info at pbxl.jp or visit http://en.pbxl.co.jp/ ------------ PBXL is BUSINESS COMMUNICATIONS -------------- +++ WHAT'S NEW This week Rakuten, Japan's largest Internet company, announced that it is acquiring Tradoria GmbH, Germany's largest online shopping firm. With the acquisition, Rakuten is now in eight international markets and is on track to be knocking on Amazon's door in the next three years to become the largest online shopping company globally in terms of net profits. For comparison, Amazon had 2010 global sales of around US$34bn and net earnings of US$1.2bn, while Rakuten's 2010 global sales were roughly US$4.2bn with a net profit of US$428m. But Rakuten profits are growing the quickest. It's interesting to see that even though Rakuten's revenues are just 15% or so of Amazon's that its net profit ratio is double that of the US firm's. Commentators say this is primarily because Rakuten doesn't operate physical warehouses, and it is much more deeply into the financial sector, cross-feeding customers into financial services from its customer base. No doubt it is also because Rakuten is strategically choosing to only set up in high-growth countries at a time when it doesn't have to invent a new business model. Being Number Two can be helpful sometimes. The Tradoria business was purchased for an unknown sum, but given the size of the business, we expect that they paid more than the US$263m paid for France's PriceMinister last year. This acquisition and a number of others made by Rakuten in the last 12 months underscores the relative advantage that Japanese companies have in making foreign high-grade purchases using cheap funds from home. Tradoria will add another 8m products and 4,400 member stores to Rakuten's Japanese empire of 37,000 merchants and 75MM SKUs. The Tradoria acquisition comes hard on the heels of another purchase by Rakuten, this time in Brazil, of one of the leading e-commerce companies in that country, Ikeda. Also this year, Rakuten set up in Indonesia a joint venture with domestic media conglomerate PT Global Mediacom. The new Internet shopping mall there is called ?Rakuten Belanja Online? and will compete with a number of incumbents. [Continued below...] ----------------- Would You Write to Eat Out? ------------- Metropolis' www.metrodining.jp website is gaining followers at a prodigious pace, and we need more expertly written food reviews. If you can write, and if you eat out a lot anyway, just how many reviews of places you have already been to would you be willing to write, in return for a meal out for two as payment? We're interested to know the answer to that question and invite readers to contact us and share their opinions. Better still, if you would like to be a guinea pig in a new barter payment program we are considering for Metrodining.jp, then let us know that too. Contact us at terrie at metropolis.co.jp to kick things off. ------------------------------------------------------------ [...Article continues] So, if you include the Baidu joint venture and Buy.com in the USA, in the last 14 months Rakuten's international M&A and investments have almost hit a billion dollars: * 2010 May -- Rakuten bought Buy.com in the US for $250m * 2010 June -- Priceminister in France for EUR200m, company had EUR40m revenues in 2010, so Rakuten paid 5x * 2010 October -- Rakuten/Baidu j/v, Lekutian, opens website, Rakuten will put US$50m into j/v over 3 years * 2011 June -- Rakuten/MNC j/v opens website, undiclosed investment amount but probably US$20m or so * 2011 June -- Ikeda purchase in Brazil, undisclosed amount but our guess is around US$50m * 2011 July -- Tradoria purchase in Germany, undisclosed amount and again, our guess is around US$300m This seems like a lot of activity, given everything the company is also doing here in Japan and in a number of other countries (Taiwan, Thailand, etc.) and makes us wonder if Rakuten isn't running the risk of over-expansion before it is internally capable of managing the pressures of an international business. Now we don't know what measures are being put in to place to cope with the new companies and people becoming part of the global Rakuten network, but looking at the Amazon financial report for 2010, they very helpfully list up the four major challenges that they face with their international business: Management, Operations, Financial and Other. For Rakuten, let us recast these risks slightly as Internal and External, then pick up on a few that we see as being threats that hopefully they are focusing on. Internal ========== 1. Continuity and Consistency Rakuten CEO Hiroshi Mikitani has stated that his key to expansion is the "federation" of different businesses in different countries, and to keep local management in place. This may sound good as a concept, but in pursuing convenience for a rapid-fire M&A strategy, it is also creating a negative balancing factor, which is inefficiency. To really keep Rakuten's margins where they are -- and they are excellent -- the company needs to figure out how to roll out common systems (managerial and IT) amongst all its properties. This is only going to get harder as more acquisitions get done. 2. HR Unlike Japan, most employees at the newly acquired businesses will owe little loyalty to a company in far off Japan and as the founders leave with their buy-out packages, the middle managers and those close to them will leave as well. In other large Japanese firms, the solution has been to send out Japanese top managers to run each country, and have these people provide the communications and controls lifeline back to headquarters. We presume that Rakuten plans to do the same, but since it's a young company, one wonders if they can hire the quality and experience needed for such positions. Lack of experienced, loyal managers has been the undoing of many a fast-growing company in the past. Back at Headquarters in Tokyo, another challenge is for Rakuten is to internationalize and bring in more experienced foreign managers. Currently on the board of 16 directors there are only two foreigners, and neither appears to be involved in an executive role. This means that day-to-day operations don't have international depth and this probably needs to be fixed fairly quickly. 3. Complexity The company is a reflection of the founder, who has an interest in a wide range of industries and segments. Some of these have been really well chosen, such as matching finance to shopping -- and follows the examples of successful US companies such as GMAC (now Ally Financial). But with such broad scope, the ability for operations people to keep a handle on all the moving parts, especially as the company starts linking the businesses together internationally, will create some massive logistical and technical headaches. We can only imagine that this has already started and is probably the strongest point of risk to the company. This is a risk that can only be resolved with some serious top-level policies and procedures being put into place. External ========== 1. Reputational risk through software malfunction What if it was revealed that Rakuten systems had a piece of "back door" code, or incorrectly processed certain transactions over a long period of time? We're not saying these problems exist, but if they did, then Rakuten could have a situation similar to Toyota with sticking gas pedals. As Rakuten rolls out its own software into multiple acquired firms and j/v's, the risks involved in possible flaws in the software magnify tremendously, and the company may not be ready to address multiple law suits in multiple countries, let alone handle the massive PR fall-out that would occur on multiple fronts. 2. Hackers Rakuten handles cash, and profits from doing so, thus putting more onus on it than some other players to be sure that its systems are hacker proof. As we've seen with Sony, the more diverse a company becomes, the more likely it is that it has weaknesses in the business and security systems of its international operations. Further, given that Rakuten is a Japanese company, we're surprised that it hasn't yet been the target of sustained attacks by Chinese nationalists looking to "teach the Japanese a lesson". Loss of user data, planting of viruses, or sustained Denial of Service attacks are all likely scenarios. 3. Anti-monopoly laws In some lesser developed countries, such as Indonesia, Thailand, etc., it is likely that Rakuten's solutions are sufficiently technologically advanced that over the next 3 years or so the company will kill the competition -- much as Amazon has killed Borders in the USA. We imagine that the governments of each country, where business and government are tightly bound together, will not take such successes lightly. 4. Taxes Amazon is fighting interstate sales taxes in the USA and what is driving this development is the disparity between tax levels of those various states. Since Rakuten wants to open up cross-border sales as a major plank in its expansion strategy -- Indonesian and Thai business operators are really excited about the opportunity to sell directly to Japanese shoppers -- then we believe that taxation differences will surely provoke new legislation as trade levels increase. ************* If Mikitani is able to overcome these risks, and given how the quality of the business model is really starting to produce some solid profits, then we think that Amazon should see Rakuten as a major threat in the coming 3-5 years. The M&A strategy that Rakuten is following obviously is a very compelling one. For the cost of 1% or less of the purchase price of US$300m (our guess) to finance the acquisition of Germany's leading online shopping mall, Rakuten has secured an additional chunk of EUR60m or so in revenues and EUR15m in net profits (again, our guess). This is a pretty good value proposition, and a strong reason for the M&A activity by Rakuten to continue apace. ...The information janitors/ ***------------------------****-------------------------*** --------- BIOS - Bilingual IT Systems and Support --------- BiOS full-service IT solutions has a new service. Working with our fully licenced temporary dispatch group, we are now able to provide Japan in-country workers for companies not yet registered in Japan. This innovative service is available for companies needing to hire staff for Japanese customers, but who are unable to commit to the expense and infrastructure of maintaining an office in Japan. We take care of all aspects of the employment, contracting, and dispatch -- including management of the employee. Also, if you're thinking of Cloud office solutions, take a look at Microsoft's new Business Productivity Online Standard Suite. Terrie mentions Exchange Online in TT602, and we can do the same implementations for you. For more information on this and other SI and IT services, in English or Japanese: Phone: (03) 4588-2220, Email: solutions at biosjp.com Web: www.biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ NEWS - Jump in single-person households a social problem - Unemployment numbers don't include Tohoku - Shinsei starts path to recovery - One-time Yankee pitcher Hideki Irabu dies - Japan Tobacco buys out Sudan tobacco company -> Jump in single-person households a social problem A report from last year's census has found that of the 50.9m households in Japan, the number of single-person residences was 32%, the first time that singles outnumber those households with couples and children. Apparently there are no 15.9m people living alone, up 10% over the last census in 2005. Trends show that by 2030 there will also be more couples living together without kids, than those with kids -- not a good omen for the nation's child-support industries. Another fact to be highlighted was that of low salaries. In 1997, couples with children had incomes of JPY5m-JPY6.9m, however, by 2007 the income range had plummeted to JPY3m-JPY3.9m annually. (Source: TT commentary from japantimes.co.jp, Jul 31, 2011) http://search.japantimes.co.jp/mail/ed20110731a1.html -> Unemployment numbers don't include Tohoku We wonder if the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications is doing anyone any favors by not publishing the real total number of unemployed in Japan. The government put out the seasonal adjusted numbers, showing that unemployment was up slightly at 2.89m people, or 4.6% of the population. However, by our reckoning the real number if it included about 400,000 unemployed in Tohoku, would be more like 5.3%. There were 59.63m people working in Japan in May, 2011. (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Jul 29, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110729D29JF112.htm -> Shinsei starts path to recovery Investors in Shinsei bank must be relieved to know that it seems to be on the path back to recovery, after a near-death experience relating to its consumer finance business. The bank said that consolidated net profit for the first quarter (Apr-Jun) was up 31% over last year, to JPY18.1bn. A statement said that the improved performance was due to reduced consumer finance business costs and gains from foreign shareholdings. (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Jul 28, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110728D28SS057.htm -> One-time Yankee pitcher Hideki Irabu dies We were a bit shocked to hear that Japanese pitching pioneer in the US Major Leagues, Hideki Irabu, was found dead at his Los Angeles home aged just 42. Police said that he had hanged himself. This is a sad end for someone who followed Nomo in the relatively recent trend of Japanese baseball stars moving as a free agent to the USA, in 1997. Irabu had a great start with the Yankees, but faded quickly and bounced around the Minor Leagues for a while after that. He is survived by a wife and two children. (Source: TT commentary from nytimes.com, Jul 29, 2011) http://nyti.ms/okUV16 -> Japan Tobacco buys out Sudan tobacco company Facing falling sales at home, Japan Tobacco has long since embarked on a foreign expansion strategy based on M&A and cheap funds from Japan. The company has reportedly agreed to buy for US$450m the Haggar tobacco firm in the newly established Republic of South Sudan. The price paid was 9.9 times FY2010's earnings -- less than the premium it paid for the Gallaher Group in the UK back in 2007. ***Ed: The M&A strategy has been good for Japan Tobacco and the company expects net income of JPY161bn for FY2010, up JPY16bn from the year before. (Source: TT commentary from bloomberg.net, Jul 29, 2011) http://bloom.bg/prvRkY NOTE: Broken links Many online news sources remove their articles after just a few days of posting them, thus breaking our links -- we apologize for the inconvenience. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** ------------- Japanese Labor Law in English --------------- CCH is pleased to introduce the CCH NEW HR book written in English -- Japanese Labor & Employment Law and Practice, 1st Edition, published June 10, 2011, JPY22,050 (incl. tax) This book was revamped from the 'Japan Staff Employment Law Guide 1st Ed'. New amendments, additions and more details and precise information are available throughout all chapters. Page volume also increased by 100+ pages. Contact: support at cch.co.jp, or 03-6234-3980 Orders: https://www.cch-japan.jp/contents/register/form www.cchjapan.jp ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CANDIDATE ROUND UP/VACANCIES => BiOS, a Division of the LINC Media group, is actively marketing the following positions for customers setting up or expanding in Japan, as well as other employers of bilinguals. ** HIGHLIGHTED POSITION BiOS is urgently looking for a Vendor Manager with experience developing a framework for strategic sourcing and vendor management along with business strategies at our client?s office in the Tokyo area. The candidate will be responsible for managing overall vendor-related activities (i.e. proposal review, information request, vendor registration, etc.), as well as manage risk for vendor activities by reviewing current status of contracts, evaluations, etc.. You will also be responsible for for acting as a single point of contact for all vendors, procurement, and asset management teams. Due to the technical nature and demanding work environment, this position is suitable for someone with solid experience in vendor management of multiple sites, with vendors located both in and outside Japan. In addition, since this role requires direct negotiations with both Japanese and international parties both internally and externally, business-level communication skill in both English and Japanese will be required. Remuneration is JPY8m ? JPY11m depending on your experience and skill level. ** POSITIONS VACANT - Project Manager, global bank, JPY8M ? JPY10M - Network/VoIP-PBX engr, global marketing co, JPY5M ? JPY6M - Jnr iPhone Developer, multinational IT, JPY3.5M ? JPY4.5M - MAC Coordinator, global ibank, JPY4M ? JPY5M - System Engr (Bank Account System), IT co, JPY5M ? JPY7M - Helpdesk Engr, global med equipment co, JPY4M ? JPY5.5M Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: tomohiro.kimura at biosjp.com ** BiOS Job Mail Every 2 weeks BiOS sends out a regular communication to its job seeking candidates, called BiOS Job Mail. Every edition carries a list of BiOS's current and most up-to-date vacancies, with each entry featuring a short job description and a direct link to the main entry on the BiOS home page. Regardless of whether you are unemployed and searching, thinking about a career change, or just curious to know if there is something out there that might suit you better, the BiOS Job Mail newsletter is an easy and convenient way for you to stay informed. If you would like to register for the BiOS Job Mail, or to find out more, please email kenji.sakota at biosjp.com. Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: tomohiro.kimura at biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ UPCOMING EVENTS/ANNOUNCEMENTS --------------- Start a Company in Japan ------------------ Entrepreneur's Handbook Seminar 10th of September, 2011 If you have been considering setting up your own company, find out what it takes to make it successful. Terrie Lloyd, founder of over 17 start-up companies in Japan, will be giving an English-language seminar and Q and A on starting up a company in Japan. This is an ideal opportunity to find out what is involved, and to ask specific questions that are not normally answered in business books. All materials are in English and are Japan-focused. For more details: http://www.japaninc.com/entrepreneur_handbook_seminar ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CORRECTIONS/FEEDBACK In this section we run comments and corrections submitted by readers. We encourage you to spot our mistakes and amplify our points, by email, to editors at terrie.com. *** No feedback or corrections today. *********************************************************** END SUBSCRIBERS: 8,914 members as of July 31, 2011 (We purge our list regularly.) +++ ABOUT US STAFF Written by: Terrie Lloyd (terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com) HELP: E-mail Terrie-request at mailman.japaninc.com with the word 'help' in the subject or body (don't include the quotes), and you will get back a message with instructions. FEEDBACK Send letters (Feedback, Inquiries & Information) to the editor to terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com. ADVERTISING INFORMATION For more information on advertising in this newsletter, Contact ads at japaninc.com. SUBSCRIBE Get Terrie's Take by giving your name and email address at http://www.japaninc.com/newsletters/free_sign_up, or go straight to Mailman at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ Copyright 2011 Japan Inc. Communications Inc. ----------------- Japan Inc opens up Japan ---------------- J at pan Inc is Japan's only independently published English- language business website. Authoritatively chronicling online the business trends in Japan, each posting brings you in-depth analysis of business, people and technology in the world's second largest economy. Visit www.japaninc.com for the best business insight on Japan available. ----------------------------------------------------------- -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From terrie at mailman.japaninc.com Mon Aug 8 01:51:00 2011 From: terrie at mailman.japaninc.com (Terrie's Take) Date: Mon, 8 Aug 2011 01:51:00 +0900 Subject: Terrie's Take 625 -- Why is Hitachi Merging with MHI? e-biz news from Japan. Message-ID: * * * * * * * * * T E R R I E 'S T A K E * * * * * * * A weekly roundup of news & information from Terrie Lloyd. (http://www.terrie.com) General Edition Sunday, August 7, 2011, Issue No. 625 +++ INDEX - What's New -- Why is Hitachi Merging with MHI? - News -- Public mistrust in new rice harvest - Candidate Roundup/Vacancies - Upcoming Events - Corrections/Feedback -- Tradoria Really a Deal? - News Credits SUBSCRIBE to, UNSUBSCRIBE from Terrie's Take at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take, or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ ----------- UPGRADE TODAY TO PBXL IP TELEPHONY ------------ PBXL has the solution for your office. PBXL will purchase and dispose of your outdated, unsupported phone system and provide you with state-of-the-art Cisco VoIP telephony. Designed with scalable enterprise level functionality for companies ranging from two seats to two hundred, PBXL is the perfect cost-effective solution when opening an office, expanding a business, or rolling out a new BCP location. For additional information call us anytime at 03-4550-1600, e-mail us at info at pbxl.jp or visit http://en.pbxl.co.jp/ ------------ PBXL is BUSINESS COMMUNICATIONS -------------- +++ WHAT'S NEW Last week the Japanese commercial sector was abuzz with a story broken by the Nikkei, that Hitachi and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries were in discussions to merge their businesses sometime in 2013. Apparently the two companies are looking at a "merger of equals" and creating Japan's second largest company after Toyota. On the face of it, the merger is a bold and exciting move. Both companies have core businesses that complement each other and would go a long way to helping each other survive in competition against GE, Siemens, and various Chinese newcomers. However, Reuters has since come out with a story that, after all the media speculation, both companies are now possibly backing away from a merger discussion. While on the one hand it is surprising that they can't take the heat of the media spotlight, given that both firms are so large and well known, on the other hand both have backgrounds of being reticent engineer-driven businesses suffused with history and pride, and the media speculation hurts. Neither company wants to hear others, especially the media, say what is an obvious reality, that with the decline in the domestic sector and patronage by the government, they have to reinvent themselves and go international. The trouble is that their foreign competitors run circles around them in terms of speed and cost-efficiency. [Continued below...] ---------------- Would You Write to Eat Out? -------------- Metropolis' www.metrodining.jp website is gaining followers at a prodigious pace, and we need more expertly written food reviews. If you can write, and if you eat out a lot anyway, just how many reviews of places you have already been to would you be willing to write, in return for a meal out for two as payment? We're interested to know the answer to that question and invite readers to contact us and share their opinions. Better still, if you would like to be a guinea pig in a new barter payment program we are considering for Metrodining.jp, then let us know that too. Contact us at terrie at metropolis.co.jp to kick things off. ------------------------------------------------------------ [...Article continues] Hitachi's reaction to the original Nikkei article says it all. They put out a terse press release stating only "The article is not based on fact." Perhaps therein lies the problem. Traditional bedrock companies in Japan are proud and feudalistic. This used to be their strength -- commonality of purpose, self-sacrificing employees, and no arguments about decisions from the top. However, with the advent of the information age, quality of response and reaction has become more important than unwavering commitment and persistence, and Hitachi in particular has suffered as a result. Perhaps ironic given that the company is so deeply involved in the IT industry. Further, because of their deep commitment to national priorities, from energy to armaments, both companies have for decades been the nation's employers of choice and trusted partners of generations of governments. The problem now is that they have to divest themselves of the notion of being providers to the Japanese nation and instead get back to the core activities of being businesses. When you're proud, that's hard to do. The good news is that neither firm is "done for". Together they would generate sales of JPY11.8trn, and employ 430,000 people. They are active in most countries of the world, either directly or through agents, and they cover most areas of manufacturing, energy, electrics, and IT. Most importantly, they have strong brand names that can carry the businesses into their next growth phase, should there be one. So why now? Of the two companies, it is probably fair to say that Hitachi is perceived as the weaker in terms of competitiveness and financial performance. This is partly due to its unwieldy size, partly due to its old fashioned leadership style, and partly because it is not part of a strong Keiretsu grouping with ready access to emergency cash. The conglomerate was hard hit by the post-bubble period but somehow managed to limp on for almost 20 years. However, three years ago the company got further mauled by the Lehman Shock, and it became obvious how weakened the group had become. There was panic by shareholders at the time, and its stock price plummeted from JPY800 to just JPY200 in a matter of months. It didn't help that the firm also lost a huge amount of money that year as well. Things appear to have improved since then, and management seems to be taking seriously the need for drastic changes. It was around 2008 that we started hearing of radical ideas such as sending hundreds of engineers to India and other emerging economies, as the company committed to internationalizing. Further, the hundreds of subsidiaries started getting merged or cut, and as a result, consolidated net profit for last year was JPY238bn -- the highest for years. Still, they need to continue focusing on profitability, which is currently around 3%. In comparison, GE has a profit margin of around 30% for similar sales, and Siemens in Europe comes in at around 14%. There are plenty of other old fashioned behemoths needing to merge, trim, and internationalize, and we're going to see more of these announcements come up, whether or not this Hitachi-MHI deal goes through. Speculation is that Kawasaki Heavy Industries, IHI, and even Toshiba will have to look at merging with someone else in order to compete with Hitachi-MHI. However, the company that we think most needs to be merged with someone is NEC. More on them another day, but suffice to say that while even Hitachi's share price has held steady over the last 6 months, NEC has lost about 40% of its value. Shareholders sense there is a sickness that the company can't shake, and with an FY2011 loss of JPY12.5bn they'd be right. ...The information janitors/ ***------------------------****-------------------------*** --------- BIOS - Bilingual IT Systems and Support --------- BiOS full-service IT solutions has a new service. Working with our fully licenced temporary dispatch group, we are now able to provide Japan in-country workers for companies not yet registered in Japan. This innovative service is available for companies needing to hire staff for Japanese customers, but who are unable to commit to the expense and infrastructure of maintaining an office in Japan. We take care of all aspects of the employment, contracting, and dispatch -- including management of the employee. Also, if you're thinking of Cloud office solutions, take a look at Microsoft's new Business Productivity Online Standard Suite. Terrie mentions Exchange Online in TT602, and we can do the same implementations for you. For more information on this and other SI and IT services, in English or Japanese: Phone: (03) 4588-2220, Email: solutions at biosjp.com Web: www.biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ NEWS - Public mistrust in new rice harvest - Gaba about to be gobbled up - Automakers struggling to find employees - Korean alternative medicine draws thousands - UK MOX plant closes down -> Public mistrust in new rice harvest The Agriculture Ministry has a big problem. Consumers are dubious about the safety of the new season rice crop and are instead stockpiling 2010 rice while they can. The Ministry has said that it will check new season rice in two stages, to ensure food safety, but nonetheless, rice merchants all over Tokyo are running out of last year's stock, reporting sales at double the normal levels. ***Ed: Housewives can be fooled once, but not twice. Their logic is simple: if thousands of cattle contaminated with cesium can be "accidentally" sold into the food chain and that cesium came from rice stalks used as feed, then the chances are that the current rice crop from Fukushima and surrounding areas might be contaminated as well. Perception is reality.** (Source: TT commentary from japantimes.co.jp, Aug 6, 2011) http://search.japantimes.co.jp/mail/nn20110806a3.html -> Gaba about to be gobbled up Medical-Education operator, Nichii Gakkan, has announced that it will acquire Gaba, the high-profile English-language conversation school, for JPY10bn. Nichii is offering a 53% premium over Gaba's closing price on Friday. While Nichii lost JPY2.3bn on its education sector last year (it is much more successful in Health/Medical), Gaba in contrast made JPY596m on sales of JPY7.57bn. ***Ed: We're not sure that Gaba is going to fill the huge hole that Nichii experienced in Education last year, but at least the timing will be good to hop on to the internationalization bandwagon.** (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.co.jp, Aug 6, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/TNKS/Nni20110805D0508N04.htm -> Automakers struggling to find employees In an ironic situation, given the general high unemployment in Japan and the joblessness of many up in Tohoku, Honda and other auto firms are complaining that they can't find enough factory workers. Honda is looking for around 3,000 contract employees and is using job placement companies to help in the search. ***Ed: The problem is two-fold. Firstly the positions Honda is offering, only pay JPY1,200-JPY1,300/hour, which is not high enough to make young unemployed people want to leave home and the dole, and secondly, the government sent home in 2009 and 2010 tens of thousands of Brazilian nisei who otherwise would have filled the gap.** (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.co.jp, Aug 6, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110806D0508A15.htm?GID=130 -> Korean alternative medicine draws thousands Maybe Japan should be taking a leaf out of South Korea's playbook as far as medical tourism is concerned. While Japan may get a couple of hundred heart patients a year, according to the Korea Tourism Organization, in the first half of 2011 6,246 Japanese tourists checked in for treatment at nine Korean hospitals and clinics -- in particular those specializing in Oriental medicine, dermatology and plastic surgery. This is a 35.2% over last year. ***Ed: A friend who went to one of these clinics tells us that most popular on the alternative medicine side is treatment for facial wrinkles amongst women in their 40's and 50's. Nothing new under the sun...** (Source: TT commentary from donga.com, Aug 6, 2011) http://bit.ly/oH7rmZ -> UK MOX plant closes down A disaster half a world away has meant the loss of 600 jobs for workers in Seascale, on the UK's Northwest Cumbria coast. The Sellafield plant depended on Chubu Electric Power (Chuden) buying MOX fuel for Chubu-region nuclear reactors, and Chuden was in fact Sellafield's only major contract client. The closure will have a major negative effect on employment in the area and local unions are understandably upset. However, the strong move away from commissioning any further nuclear facilities by the Japan government means that there is little likelihood of a reprieve for the Sellafield workers. (Source: TT commentary from nwemail.co.uk, Aug 6, 2011) http://bit.ly/n38Uvn NOTE: Broken links Many online news sources remove their articles after just a few days of posting them, thus breaking our links -- we apologize for the inconvenience. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** ------------- Japanese Labor Law in English --------------- CCH is pleased to introduce the CCH NEW HR book written in English -- Japanese Labor & Employment Law and Practice, 1st Edition, published June 10, 2011, JPY22,050 (incl. tax) This book was revamped from the 'Japan Staff Employment Law Guide 1st Ed'. New amendments, additions and more details and precise information are available throughout all chapters. Page volume also increased by 100+ pages. Contact: support at cch.co.jp, or 03-6234-3980 Orders: https://www.cch-japan.jp/contents/register/form www.cchjapan.jp ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CANDIDATE ROUND UP/VACANCIES => BiOS, a Division of the LINC Media group, is actively marketing the following positions for customers setting up or expanding in Japan, as well as other employers of bilinguals. ** HIGHLIGHTED POSITION BiOS is urgently looking for a Vendor Management Contract Administrator with experience preparing IT procurement-related official documentation at our client?s office in the Shinagawa-ku area. The candidate will be responsible for assisting all of the company?s Japan office activities, such as managing and coordinating contract administration activities, as well as liaising with technical contacts at all Japan offices, and client procurement services to ensure the timely completion of contract execution and renewal processes. You will also be responsible for working with client legal offices to ensure that the legal review/approval process is followed and deviations are approved where necessary. Due to the technical nature and demanding work environment, this position is suitable for someone with solid experience administering technology-related contracts. In addition, since this role requires coordination with many internal and external teams/departments, including the Legal department, business-level communication skills in English and native-level Japanese is required. Remuneration is JPY7m ? JPY10m depending on your experience and skill level. ** POSITIONS VACANT - IMAC Engineer, global ibank, JPY4M ? JPY5M - Sales Team Account Manager, BiOS, JPY4M ? JPY5M - Project Manager, global bank, JPY7M ? JPY10M - Nw & Voice Eng, global mktg co, JPY 5M ? JPY6.5M - Field Engineer, BiOS, JPY4M ? JPY5M Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: tomohiro.kimura at biosjp.com ** BiOS Job Mail Every 2 weeks BiOS sends out a regular communication to its job seeking candidates, called BiOS Job Mail. Every edition carries a list of BiOS's current and most up-to-date vacancies, with each entry featuring a short job description and a direct link to the main entry on the BiOS home page. Regardless of whether you are unemployed and searching, thinking about a career change, or just curious to know if there is something out there that might suit you better, the BiOS Job Mail newsletter is an easy and convenient way for you to stay informed. If you would like to register for the BiOS Job Mail, or to find out more, please email tomohiro.kimura at biosjp.com. ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ UPCOMING EVENTS/ANNOUNCEMENTS --------------- Start a Company in Japan ------------------ Entrepreneur's Handbook Seminar, 10th of September, 2011 If you have been considering setting up your own company, find out what it takes to make it successful. Terrie Lloyd, founder of over 17 start-up companies in Japan, will be giving an English-language seminar and Q and A on starting up a company in Japan. This is an ideal opportunity to find out what is involved, and to ask specific questions that are not normally answered in business books. All materials are in English and are Japan-focused. For more details: http://www.japaninc.com/entrepreneur_handbook_seminar ----------------------------------------------------------- --------------- Mate Rock Charity Concert ----------------- Australian Rock Legends come together to help Tohoku Featuring: Jimmy Barnes, the Angels, & Kevin Bloody Wilson! Hakuba 47, 10th of September, 2011. Mate Rock is a musical extravaganza to be held in Hakuba, a beautiful mountain village in the Japan Alps, about 3 hours from Tokyo. The concert will run from noon to early evening at the base of the 47 Ski Resort. Bring a rug and a picnic and enjoy a day of classic Australian rock in a spectacular natural setting. All proceeds of the concert will go to charities in Tohoku providing scholarships for children to study overseas. For information and bookings; www.materock.com ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CORRECTIONS/FEEDBACK In this section we run comments and corrections submitted by readers. We encourage you to spot our mistakes and amplify our points, by email, to editors at terrie.com. *** In TT624 we wondered if Rakuten was over-extending itself, especially since its Tradoria acquisition in Germany brings the company to about US$1bn in acquisitions in the last 18 months. A reader now wonders if Tradoria is such a bargain in the first place. => Reader contribution: Tradoria is Germany's leading online shopping mall? Not really. Amazon.de and numerous other e-commerce platforms like ebay.de, zalando.de or otto.de are bigger and receive more traffic and customers than Tradoria. Have a look at trends.google.com for some traffic info on above mentioned sites. Tradoria.de clocks in at a measly 15,000 unique visitors whereas amazon.de easily surpasses 1 million uniques a day (ebay.de 3m, otto.de 250k, zalando.de 150k). Also, tradoria had quite some negative press (http://goo.gl/CcfJ9) and customer experiences aren't so great either (http://goo.gl/jKgdm). Rakuten Inc. probably chose to acquire Tradoria from DuMont Venture because Rakuten's B2B2C business model is exactly what Tradoria does. As you already pointed out in your "Internal" points 1 to 3, international business will be _very_ challenging and different for Rakuten from the closed Japanese environment. I say wait and see to Rakuten's broad-business strategy, it might work in Japan but things will be difficult internationally. *********************************************************** END SUBSCRIBERS: 8,926 members as of Aug 7, 2011 (We purge our list regularly.) +++ ABOUT US STAFF Written by: Terrie Lloyd (terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com) HELP: E-mail Terrie-request at mailman.japaninc.com with the word 'help' in the subject or body (don't include the quotes), and you will get back a message with instructions. FEEDBACK Send letters (Feedback, Inquiries & Information) to the editor to terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com. ADVERTISING INFORMATION For more information on advertising in this newsletter, Contact ads at japaninc.com. SUBSCRIBE Get Terrie's Take by giving your name and email address at http://www.japaninc.com/newsletters/free_sign_up, or go straight to Mailman at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ Copyright 2011 Japan Inc. Communications Inc. ----------------- Japan Inc opens up Japan ---------------- J at pan Inc is Japan's only independently published English- language business website. Authoritatively chronicling online the business trends in Japan, each posting brings you in-depth analysis of business, people and technology in the world's second largest economy. Visit www.japaninc.com for the best business insight on Japan available. ----------------------------------------------------------- -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From terrie at mailman.japaninc.com Mon Aug 15 00:02:15 2011 From: terrie at mailman.japaninc.com (Terrie's Take) Date: Mon, 15 Aug 2011 00:02:15 +0900 Subject: Terrie's Take 626 -- Why Ohio Shouldn't Cut its Foreign Offices, e-biz news from Japan. Message-ID: * * * * * * * * * T E R R I E 'S T A K E * * * * * * * A weekly roundup of news & information from Terrie Lloyd. (http://www.terrie.com) General Edition Sunday, August 14, 2011, Issue No. 626 +++ INDEX - What's New -- Why Ohio Shouldn't Cut its Foreign Offices. - News -- US$800m auto plant in Mexico for Honda - Candidate Roundup/Vacancies - Upcoming Events - Corrections/Feedback -- Was Nikkei too fast on the trigger about Hitachi-MHI merger rumor? - News Credits SUBSCRIBE to, UNSUBSCRIBE from Terrie's Take at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take, or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ ----------- UPGRADE TODAY TO PBXL IP TELEPHONY ------------ PBXL has the solution for your office. PBXL will purchase and dispose of your outdated, unsupported phone system and provide you with state-of-the-art Cisco VoIP telephony. Designed with scalable enterprise level functionality for companies ranging from two seats to two hundred, PBXL is the perfect cost-effective solution when opening an office, expanding a business, or rolling out a new BCP location. For additional information call us anytime at 03-4550-1600, e-mail us at info at pbxl.jp or visit http://en.pbxl.co.jp/ ------------ PBXL is BUSINESS COMMUNICATIONS -------------- +++ WHAT'S NEW Some readers may know that within the LINC Media group of companies, of which Japan Inc. Communications putting out this newsletter is one, we also represent the State of Ohio. This is a representative office position that Japan Inc. won in an open bid back in 2008 and the team has been helping Ohioan companies find business partners and markets in Japan, as well as helping Japanese companies do Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) into Ohio. It's been an interesting journey so far, with around 15-20 companies a year coming through the Ohio Department of Development (ODOD) Global Markets Division. Not many people realize that Ohio has the second largest population of Japanese companies in the USA, thanks to Honda setting up the first major Japanese auto factory in the USA back in 1982 in Marysville. They since have caused hundreds of parts suppliers to set up shop there as well, and even though those suppliers now also support Toyota, Nissan, and others in nearby states, they stay in Ohio for convenience and collaboration. Ohio learned well from the Japanese experience, and in 1990 set up a network of overseas offices that had the state leading the way in foreign presence and foreign relationship building. At the peak there were 13 offices, although currently there are 11. They are located in strategic places such as Canada, Mexico, Belgium, Chile, Brazil, Israel, South Africa, Southeast Asia, China, Japan, and India. Surprisingly, given that level of presence, the publicly stated budget for the offices is just US$3.5m, which includes the Columbus head office. This is a pretty efficient number that many exporting companies would be happy to be able to achieve. It was with some surprise then, that a decision was made a few days ago (and which is now on public record and thus why we can discuss it), to substantially reduce the Global Markets team team from 19 down to 4 people, and to possibly cut all the foreign offices. While we realize that Ohio like most states is having a massive challenge balancing its books in the current economic environment, it is hard to comprehend why, if the US national imperative is to have the country ramp up its exports again, that these well-established channels for trade leads and development are being dumped because of short-term budget cuts. [Continued below...] ---------------- Would You Write to Eat Out? -------------- Metropolis' www.metrodining.jp website is gaining followers at a prodigious pace, and we need more expertly written food reviews. If you can write, and if you eat out a lot anyway, just how many reviews of places you have already been to would you be willing to write, in return for a meal out for two as payment? Or, what if you were "paid" in hotel rooms at resorts outside Tokyo, or in brand name clothing or airline tickets? We're interested to know the answer to that question and invite readers to contact us and share their opinions. Better still, if you would like to be a guinea pig in a new barter payment program we are considering for Metrodining.jp, then email and let us know that, too. Contact us at terrie at metropolis.co.jp to kick things off. ------------------------------------------------------------ [...Article continues] To be fair, our understanding is that Ohio Governor Kasich plans to have many of the export-building functions of ODOD Global Markets incorporated into JobsOhio, a new semi-private organization tasked with investing in companies to push up their exports more. Because the organization is new, there isn't any real definition yet on who will get assistance and who won't, but given that it is premised on investments, we can assume that companies not deemed as being worthy of investment (or not wanting it) will no longer use state assistance to build exports. This sounds like a service downgrade to us. Actually, this approach of a government focusing on export winners is not unique, and in the last ten years there has been a notable move to this philosophy amongst government trade organizations in many other countries as well. On a macro level it means that money goes to the companies most likely to use it effectively and theoretically this translates into higher overall exports for the nation -- so it could be a good thing. But on the downside there is the moral issue of making it so much more difficult for smaller firms to get cost-effective export help. On top of the moral issue there is the loss on the state's investment in its trade offices network and also the knock-on effects of closing down a trade development facility which has run smoothly for 20 years and which was producing a demonstrable level of performance and results. Firstly, the financial loss. Ohio's roughly US$80m investment over the last two decades has allowed it to create a massive database (if Japan is anything to go by) of tens of thousands of foreign prospective partners, customers, and investors. Without maintenance by local bilinguals, this database will soon degrade and become worthless in a matter of months. One would think that Ohio would be looking to protect this investment and build on it. Indeed, thanks to having just such a database, foreign office staff are able to act on Ohio company requests for help to get market numbers, partner introductions, or push a deal through, with surprising speed. 3- to 5-day turnarounds to get a project started and 6-8 weeks to deliver are not unusual. This certainly won't be possible in the new regime if there are no in-country local representatives. Secondly, the knock-on effect. It's a given in Asian business, not just Japan, that you show long-term commitment to your partners. Not just for Ohio, our Tokyo market entry team deals with many companies from other states and countries, who quickly realize after they have won their first big contract that they are expected by their new Japanese partner to set up a company here -- so as to show commitment. This requirement is not just custom, it's very real and foreign firms who won't do it soon find their new deals drifting on to the rocks. To the western mind, setting up a local team means an entity to service the R&D and marketing needs of the local partner. And so most companies head off in this direction and it's a start. However, for the local Japanese partner, the presence of a local office is all about having someone to interact with, to scold, and who will get them attention and results from head office if things don't go well. They have learned from experience that a foreign firm trying to manage a Japanese business from headquarters is going to suffer from "out of sight, out of mind" syndrome. Local presence also means local legal responsibility and thus more care by the US firm over its Japan-based commitments and involvements. This may not seem like a desirable state of affairs for the US firm, but ironically a local formal presence can actually mean less overall risk, since it generally limits court decisions to the local firm only. This means that in the worst case scenario the US firm could sacrifice the Japan entity by allowing it to go bankrupt, without immediate damage to the headquarters. Now back to Ohio... A spokesperson for JobsOhio, a Ms. Tanner was reported in the local press as saying, "It could also be more efficient to have officials travel overseas and meet with certain investors and businesses a couple of times a year rather than have a presence in the country year-round." This seems a bit disingenuous, given that Kentucky and other states and countries are actively competing for and have successfully won billions of dollars of Japanese auto businesses that potentially could have gone to Ohio. Think Toyota, Nissan, Firestone (manufacturing) and others. These competing states are still very much in business in Japan and will make the most of this opportunity to fill the vacuum. Ohio should not be surprised at the consequences. But there does appear to be slim chance of a reprieve, since the final decision on the foreign offices doesn't seem to have been made yet. The relatively new director of ODOD is Ms. Chris Schmenk and according to her profile on Linked In, Ms. Schmenk is still the Mayor of Marysville -- you know, the place where Honda has its main US operations and employs 13,400 people? We imagine that Honda is still the largest local taxpayer at Marysville, and so she would be in an ideal position to influence JobsOhio to understand Japanese and Asian cultural needs, and in particular the need to win their trust through strong bilateral links, not fleeting hit-and-run unilateral ones. ********** Lastly, two things: 1. If you like Australian, Kiwi, California and other New World wines, then you probably know about Village Cellars (VC), Japan's largest independent importer of such wines. Headed by Mr. Nice Guy of the Japanese wine world, Richard Cohen, VC have a fantastic selection at their cellars in Nagano and are easy to deal with in English. The only problem was that you couldn't buy from them through an online store. Well, the good news is that through their WineBuzz brand, now your can. They're online at Metropolis' first web store. You can order already, at http://shop.metropolis.co.jp/winery/, and shipments will resume from Wednesday the 16th, after WineBuzz comes back from a short Obon break. 2. Next week is a slightly delayed Obon holiday for us: one of the four weeks a year that we take a break from Terrie's Take -- it's too hot to think properly anyway. We will be back on duty on August 28th. ...The information janitors/ ***------------------------****-------------------------*** --------- BIOS - Bilingual IT Systems and Support --------- BiOS full-service IT solutions has a new service. Working with our fully licenced temporary dispatch group, we are now able to provide Japan in-country workers for companies not yet registered in Japan. This innovative service is available for companies needing to hire staff for Japanese customers, but who are unable to commit to the expense and infrastructure of maintaining an office in Japan. We take care of all aspects of the employment, contracting, and dispatch -- including management of the employee. Also, if you're thinking of Cloud office solutions, take a look at Microsoft's new Business Productivity Online Standard Suite. Terrie mentions Exchange Online in TT602, and we can do the same implementations for you. For more information on this and other SI and IT services, in English or Japanese: Phone: (03) 4588-2220, Email: solutions at biosjp.com Web: www.biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ NEWS - US$800m auto plant in Mexico for Honda - 3 die, 729 hospitalized due to heat - Vegetable prices climbing - Train operator goes into agribusiness - New legislation on alternative power by September -> US$800m auto plant in Mexico for Honda Honda Motor has announced that it will build an US$800m auto plant in Guanajauto State, about 330km from its existing plants, to produce approximately 200,000 subcompact cars for sale in North America. The plant will begin operation in 2014, and will lift Honda's North American production to around 1.83m units a year. ***Ed: Honda hasn't said what models they will produce, but speculation is that they will be the Fit, CR-Z hybrid, and Insight hybrid. These vehicles are currently assembled in Japan -- so that won't be good news for Japanese workers.** (Source: TT commentary from autonews.com, Aug 12, 2011) http://www.autonews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20110812/OEM/110819959/1054 -> 3 die, 729 hospitalized due to heat If you think it's hot -- and Japanese summers always are -- well it is. The Met Agency has said that temperatures nationwide exceeded 35 degrees on Thursday. The current heatwave up until Wednesday resulted in 3 deaths from heatstroke and more than 729 hospitalizations, 14 of them serious. ***Ed: The heat is likely to be with us for this coming week, then ease a bit the following week.** (Source: TT commentary from japantimes.co.jp, Aug 12, 2011) http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nn20110812a2.html -> Vegetable prices climbing Hot weather is also responsible for driving up vegetable prices, as you most surely will have noticed at the supermarket this weekend. The wholesale prices of tomatoes, zucchini, and soybeans are up by up to 40% over this same time last year. Tomatoes on Friday were selling wholesale for JPY402/kg, a situation blamed on excessive heat in Aomori interrupting pollen development of the fruits. Shipment volumes were down 10%. (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Aug 13, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110812D1208A02.htm -> Train operator goes into agribusiness In what seems to be a logical and market-influencing step, rail operator Kintetsu Corporation has decided to go into the vegetable growing business. The company is going to set up lots on unused railway land they own but which was never developed, particularly in Nara and Mie. The company appears quite serious about the proposal, and is going to also look at leasing unused land from farmers and grow crops on the land-owners' behalf. ***Ed: Just imagine: you freight your veges on your own rail network, to your own supermarkets, for customers living in your subdivisions along your own railway lines. Grand visions and business ecosystems are what Japan's railway operators and other conglomerates are all about -- and the result is cost-effective transport, housing, and hopefully, food.** (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Aug 13, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110812D1208A05.htm -> New legislation on alternative power by September The Diet is working on new legislation, called the feed-in tariff law, which will force power utilities to purchase power from outside vendors. The new law has gained significant momentum since the Fukushima nuclear power plant disaster, and is predicted to be the catalyst for a rapid increase in solar and wind power installations over the coming decade. The bill aims for alternative energy to supply 20% of the nation's energy needs by the early 2020's, up from just 9% now. The cost of implementing the bill will be significant, with necessary upgrades to the national grid alone expected to cost around ?2trn. (Source: TT commentary from wsj.com, Aug 13, 2011) http://on.wsj.com/nU2Fjq NOTE: Broken links Many online news sources remove their articles after just a few days of posting them, thus breaking our links -- we apologize for the inconvenience. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CANDIDATE ROUND UP/VACANCIES => BiOS, a Division of the LINC Media group, is actively marketing the following positions for customers setting up or expanding in Japan, as well as other employers of bilinguals. ** HIGHLIGHTED POSITION BiOS is urgently looking for a Field Engineer with experience in providing level 2 user support and level 3 system administration support for our office in the Minato-ku area. The candidate will be responsible for providing IT infrastructure support to clients (end-user support, network/server administration, and etc) as well as participating in infrastructure related projects, such as office expansion, data center support, and etc. You will also be responsible for working closely with an internal IT manager and on-site leaders to review a project scope to ensure that services are provided according to their schedule. Due to the technical nature and demanding work environment, this position is suited for someone with solid experience in providing Windows-based user support services. In addition, since this role requires direct negotiations with both Japanese and international clients, business-level English and fluent-level Japanese communication skills are required. Remuneration is JPY4m ? JPY5m depending on your experience and skill level. ** POSITIONS VACANT - MAC Coordinator, global ibank, JPY4M ? JPY5M - Data Center Engr, IT services provider, JPY3.5M ? JPY4M - Sales Team Account Manager, BiOS, JPY4M ? JPY5M - Vendor Mgr/Contract Admin, global bank, JPY8M ? JPY11M - Helpdesk Engr, global medical equip co, JPY4M ? JPY5.5M Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: tomohiro.kimura at biosjp.com ** BiOS Job Mail Every 2 weeks BiOS sends out a regular communication to its job seeking candidates, called BiOS Job Mail. Every edition carries a list of BiOS's current and most up-to-date vacancies, with each entry featuring a short job description and a direct link to the main entry on the BiOS home page. Regardless of whether you are unemployed and searching, thinking about a career change, or just curious to know if there is something out there that might suit you better, the BiOS Job Mail newsletter is an easy and convenient way for you to stay informed. If you would like to register for the BiOS Job Mail, or to find out more, please email kenji.sakota at biosjp.com. Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: tomohiro.kimura at biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ UPCOMING EVENTS/ANNOUNCEMENTS --------------- Start a Company in Japan ------------------ Entrepreneur's Handbook Seminar, 10th of September, 2011 If you have been considering setting up your own company, find out what it takes to make it successful. Terrie Lloyd, founder of over 17 start-up companies in Japan, will be giving an English-language seminar and Q and A on starting up a company in Japan. This is an ideal opportunity to find out what is involved, and to ask specific questions that are not normally answered in business books. All materials are in English and are Japan-focused. For more details: http://www.japaninc.com/entrepreneur_handbook_seminar ----------------------------------------------------------- --------------- Mate Rock Charity Concert ----------------- Australian Rock Legends come together to help Tohoku Featuring: Jimmy Barnes, the Angels, & Kevin Bloody Wilson! Hakuba 47, 10th of September, 2011. Mate Rock is a musical extravaganza to be held in Hakuba, a beautiful mountain village in the Japan Alps, about 3 hours from Tokyo. The concert will run from noon to early evening at the base of the 47 Ski Resort. Bring a rug and a picnic and enjoy a day of classic Australian rock in a spectacular natural setting. All proceeds of the concert will go to charities in Tohoku providing scholarships for children to study overseas. For information and bookings; www.materock.com ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CORRECTIONS/FEEDBACK In this section we run comments and corrections submitted by readers. We encourage you to spot our mistakes and amplify our points, by email, to editors at terrie.com. *** In TT625 we considered why Hitachi might be merging with MHI, as reported by the Nikkei. Our reader points out that it may all just be speculation. => Our reader says: I'm not sure Hitachi's denial has anything to do with being "proud and feudalistic." I used to be an exec at another major Japanese company and found that Nikkei routinely published stories that I knew were false. Some of these, such as about new products or technologies we were supposedly working on, were quite detailed. But wrong. Nikkei is known for running "speculative" stories, shots in the dark based on a whiff of rumor. I can't be certain that's what happened in this case, so your assessment might still be right. But without more inside knowledge, and given that it was a juicy story like a merger, I'd give it at least 50-50 that Nikkei was just guessing. *** Our response: Thanks for the feedback. Yes, we agree about the Nikkei. However, in this case Reuters had an interview later with Hitachi and it seems that there really was a merger on the table. That?s why Reuters could publish an article saying the deal might be derailed. Our point about Hitachi?s denial is that it was so terse that it virtually serves no purpose. A proper response would have to been to enlarge a bit on why the two companies were talking, and to offer a more complete statement at a later date. We found ourselves thinking, ?These guys are giving an almost identical reaction to TEPCO and Toyota when caught in a crisis.? Absolutely no clue of how to manage the press, and this is typically because they?re not used to being questioned (i.e., they?re proud and feudalistic). These firms live in a connected world now, where speculation becomes fact. They need to learn to bend and interact or they will have increasing problems like this merger leak. *** Reader's follow-up: Thanks for the reply, and I take your point. They were certainly clueless about dealing with the press. Apropos of "proud and feudalistic," though, a different take still may be possible: as one of my American colleagues explained top management thinking to me soon after I joined that major Japanese company I mentioned. She said, "Outsiders think they're running the most internationalized Japanese company. But actually they behave like they're running a family-owned furniture company in Minnesota that's grown too big too fast." Turns out she was right in more ways than one. *********************************************************** END SUBSCRIBERS: 8,930 members as of Aug 14, 2011 (We purge our list regularly.) +++ ABOUT US STAFF Written by: Terrie Lloyd (terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com) HELP: E-mail Terrie-request at mailman.japaninc.com with the word 'help' in the subject or body (don't include the quotes), and you will get back a message with instructions. FEEDBACK Send letters (Feedback, Inquiries & Information) to the editor to terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com. ADVERTISING INFORMATION For more information on advertising in this newsletter, Contact ads at japaninc.com. SUBSCRIBE Get Terrie's Take by giving your name and email address at http://www.japaninc.com/newsletters/free_sign_up, or go straight to Mailman at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ Copyright 2011 Japan Inc. Communications Inc. ----------------- Japan Inc opens up Japan ---------------- J at pan Inc is Japan's only independently published English- language business website. Authoritatively chronicling online the business trends in Japan, each posting brings you in-depth analysis of business, people and technology in the world's second largest economy. Visit www.japaninc.com for the best business insight on Japan available. ----------------------------------------------------------- -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From terrie at mailman.japaninc.com Wed Aug 17 19:09:57 2011 From: terrie at mailman.japaninc.com (Terrie's Take) Date: Wed, 17 Aug 2011 19:09:57 +0900 Subject: Terrie's Take Special -- What Name for Japan-bound Tourists? Message-ID: What Name for Japan-bound Tourists? We don't usually reach out with special requests to Terrie's Take readers, we respect that people are busy. However, it's August, and we do have a good reason for asking your help. As most readers will know, our sister publication, Metropolis magazine, is well on the way to launching a major new tourism content portal for Japan, in English. We have partners covering more than 30 prefectures already and are adding more over the coming weeks until we have the whole country covered. Content is being produced in high volume, we have a collaboration contract with a certain major US search engine company, and the software is being produced and will be beta-tested in September. About the only thing not resolved yet is what we are going to call the website? Therefore, we have with the help of our partners winnowed down a list of more than 50 names to a final set of 5, and we?re now ready to have our friends tell us which of these 5 names make the most sense. Our target is English-speaking tourists looking to plan a trip to Japan, but we also need something that Japanese tour operators, hotels, and transportation companies would understand. Therefore, we are hoping to get at least several hundred comments from both non-Japanese and Japanese, telling us what you think would be most attractive to our target audience. Survey is here: http://bit.ly/ndUXFx We realize that some people may not like the top 5 names selected. If you feel strongly we should be using something else, then please let us know in the ?Other? section, where you can enter your name of choice, or use the ?Comments? section to elaborate on what you think the site should be doing to promote tourism to Japan. The deadline for voting is Sunday midnight, August 21st, 2011. One visitor, one vote please. Thank you for your interest and support in our efforts to improve tourism to Japan. We look forward to having a crowd-tested website name for this exciting new project. >From the online development team at Metropolis magazine, in conjunction with our Regional Partners. www.metropolis.co.jp Tokyo, Japan ? Metropolis, August, 2011 * Questions to terrie at lincmedia.co.jp ********************* ...The information janitors/ -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From terrie at mailman.japaninc.com Mon Aug 29 08:04:36 2011 From: terrie at mailman.japaninc.com (Terrie's Take) Date: Mon, 29 Aug 2011 08:04:36 +0900 Subject: Terrie's Take 627 -- Old People: Savings and Health Liabilities, e-biz news from Japan Message-ID: * * * * * * * * * T E R R I E 'S T A K E * * * * * * * A weekly roundup of news & information from Terrie Lloyd. (http://www.terrie.com) General Edition Sunday, August 28, 2011, Issue No. 627 +++ INDEX - What's New -- Old People: Savings and Health Liabilities. - News -- M&A picks up steam - Candidate Roundup/Vacancies - Upcoming Events - Corrections/Feedback - News Credits SUBSCRIBE to, UNSUBSCRIBE from Terrie's Take at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take, or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ ----------- UPGRADE TODAY TO PBXL IP TELEPHONY ------------ PBXL has the solution for your office. PBXL will purchase and dispose of your outdated, unsupported phone system and provide you with state-of-the-art Cisco VoIP telephony. Designed with scalable enterprise level functionality for companies ranging from two seats to two hundred, PBXL is the perfect cost-effective solution when opening an office, expanding a business, or rolling out a new BCP location. For additional information call us anytime at 03-4550-1600, e-mail us at info at pbxl.jp or visit http://en.pbxl.co.jp/ ------------ PBXL is BUSINESS COMMUNICATIONS -------------- +++ WHAT'S NEW We were in Shinjuku Tokyu Hands today, just in time for their big annual Hands Messe sale. The place was packed with people browsing for the unusual and unbuyable (in regular stores anyway). While looking around the Interior section, which features goods at twice or triple the price of Crate&Barrel in the USA, we happened to notice a number of older customers clustered around the bedding section. They were eying up the latest Tempur sponge pillows, the type that mold to and support your head and body shape. These are no ordinary pillows and come at a pricey JPY14,000 and up. In the USA you can buy the same thing online for US$86, or around JPY6,500, meaning someone is making a pretty healthy profit. Anyway, these things are really popular, and we hung around long enough to see one old lady line up pillows, mattress cover and a bunch of other accessories, which will set her back the best part of JPY100,000. We suppose a good sleep is worth a fortune to the right person, especially an older person who carefully picks and chooses their luxuries. This got us thinking about the declining Japanese consumer market and where the few bright patches are. Clearly, at least one of the brightest patches is old people -- especially if you're selling specialist bedding, orthopedic hip replacements, and food processors that let you process veges without having to chew them so much. Yes, these are big sellers as well. :-). How convenient that old people in Japan also own most of the nation's wealth. Currently the Japanese public has financial assets of JPY1.476q (US$19trn), about 1/7 of the world's total savings, and of that more than 60% is owned by people 60 or older. So it was a coincidence that as we were researching data on the wealth of old people we came across a story describing the other side of the coin, that is, the cost of old people to Japan in terms of healthcare. According to a Nikkei article, the nation's medical costs rose 3.9% to a record JPY36.6trn (US$481m) for Fiscal Year 2010 through to March 31st, 2011, and of this, expenses due to people aged 75 or older rose 5.5% to JPY12.7trn -- or 35% of the total. [Continued below...] ---------------- Would You Write to Eat Out? -------------- Metropolis' www.metrodining.jp website is gaining followers at a prodigious pace, and we need more expertly written food reviews. If you can write, and if you eat out a lot anyway, just how many reviews of places you have already been to would you be willing to write, in return for a meal out for two as payment? What about being "paid" in hotel rooms at resorts outside Tokyo, or in brand name clothing or airline tickets? We're interested to know the answer to that question and invite readers to contact us and share their opinions. Better still, if you would like to be a guinea pig in a new barter payment program we are considering for Metrodining.jp, then email and let us know. Contact us at terrie at metropolis.co.jp to kick things off. ------------------------------------------------------------ [...Article continues] Work back to people aged 70 and older and the percentage goes up to 44.3%. Now keep in mind that we have entered the age of generic drugs, so apart from the fact that government-mandated treatment fee reimbursement rates for hospitals and clinics rose just 0.19%, it's clear that most of the increase is caused by old people. So how is it that we have a situation where old people have the bulk of the nation's savings and yet the young working tax payer is expected to cover the oldies' rapidly increasing health care bills? The national insurance system for health, pension, and unemployment is already in deep trouble, and the government itself is hugely in debt and planning to issue more bonds to go even deeper in. Therefore, with a rapidly declining workforce and a much smaller payroll tax base to lean on in future years, it's obvious that the current arrangement can't keep going. One answer in the interim is said to be a massive rise in consumption tax, and Japan certainly has the luxury of having up to 15%-17% more tax up its sleeve before it hits similar rates to countries like the UK. However, here in Japan consumption tax in reality is a tax on the young, who are also typically poor, since it levies essentials, not just discretionary items. Financial experts such as the IMF say that a Japanese consumption tax rise will not be regressive, since low-income earners pay progressively lower income tax anyway and older people can still consume high-value goods and services even though they have little income. But we don't agree. The fact is that annual spending by people 70 or older in Japan is documented to be 10% less than that those in their 30s. A much higher consumption tax is going to dampen that discretionary spending even more -- moving the tax burden to regular daily necessities. Therefore, we don't think raising consumption tax is going to fix the basic problem of a rapidly greying society nor the lopsided distribution of wealth and health care liabilities. It will be a great 10-year bandaid however. So what other options are there? Our take is that not only will the retirement age be lifted to at least 70, so as to delay benefits, there will also be a means test on pensioners receiving their full pensions. We have already seen the idea of discriminating who can receive benefits and who cannot, based on the debate over payment of increased child allowances by the DPJ last year. For a while it looked like income earners of JPY20m or more weren't going to get the allowances, even though as tax payers they had a right to them. We think this idea of using social welfare as a safety net for the unfortunate, rather than a right of the many, is an inevitable development whose time will soon come. Also, and this may sound a bit extreme, Japan may have to go back to old traditions of deciding who gets to live a long medically assisted life and who is allowed to pass away with less intervention -- think "Ubasuteyama" legends where villagers in times of famine were said to leave their old folks up in the hills to die. This may sound harsh, and it certainly is morally loaded, but it could be achieved in a politically acceptable way by partially privatizing the health system so that people aged 70 or over would have to use their own assets for prolonged medical care. In this way they get to choose whether to keep living at their own cost or to pass their remaining assets to their kids. This certainly isn't what Japanese want to hear about the future for their health and social welfare system, but if you think about it, the current arrangement already unfairly burdens the young and if anyone was so inclined to study the problem they would probably find that it is adversely impacting child welfare. You have to wonder why society should value more favorably a bedridden elderly person with plenty of assets over a child whose parents are struggling to make ends meet? Is it simply because old people can vote, and kids cannot? If you want to learn more about the pros and cons of a higher consumption tax, two very good articles online are: 1. A May 2000 report from the Japan Economic Institute. http://www.jei.org/Restricted/JEIR00/0019f.html 2. And, a June 2011 report from the IMF entitled: "Raising the Consumption Tax in Japan: Why, When, How?" http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/sdn/2011/sdn1113.pdf ...The information janitors/ ***------------------------****-------------------------*** --------- BIOS - Bilingual IT Systems and Support --------- BiOS full-service IT solutions has a new service. Working with our fully licensed temporary dispatch group, we are now able to provide Japan in-country workers for companies not yet registered in Japan. This innovative service is available for companies needing to hire staff for Japanese customers, but who are unable to commit to the expense and infrastructure of maintaining an office in Japan. We take care of all aspects of the employment, contracting, and dispatch -- including management of the employee. Also, if you're thinking of Cloud office solutions, take a look at Microsoft's new Business Productivity Online Standard Suite. Terrie mentions Exchange Online in TT602, and we can do the same implementations for you. For more information on this and other SI and IT services, in English or Japanese: Phone: (03) 4588-2220, Email: solutions at biosjp.com Web: www.biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ NEWS - KDDI surpasses Softbank in new smartphone sales - Softbank pays Citibank debts by selling Yahoo shares - Consumer finance firms may be turning corner - Japanese M&A picks up steam - Domestic demand to boost solar energy shipments 1,000% -> KDDI surpasses Softbank in new smartphone sales While Softbank waits patiently for Apple to unleash the iPhone 5 on the world, its fortunes in the marketplace are falling while competitors who have next-generation Android products are in the ascendent. In July, KDDI overtook Softbank Mobile in terms of new smartphones sold, according to data from research firm BCN. ***Ed: Given that Apple has significantly increased its projections for sales of iPhone 5 phones worldwide, we don't think we can forecast the demise of Softbank just yet.** (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Aug 28, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110827D27JFF01.htm -> Softbank pays Citibank debts by selling Yahoo shares Softbank has for the last time tapped into its lucky treasure trove of Yahoo shares, selling 4% of its holding in the US firm to Citibank in return from being released from a $1.135bn loan it received from the bank in 2004. Softbank has done well out of Yahoo and used proceeds from the 37% it held back in 1996 to pay down a substantial amount of acquisition costs in its telecoms business as well as making many other investments. Softbank still holds a major stake in Yahoo Japan, which is yet another money machine. (Source: TT commentary from afp on google.com, Aug 28, 2011) http://bit.ly/nnnMHN -> Consumer finance firms may be turning corner In what would have to be good news for Shinsei bank and other firms that jumped in to the consumer finance sector 10 years ago, the level of refund requests from consumers to finance firms dropped 20% in July over the same month last year. Empowered by a court ruling in 2006, consumers had been flocking to major consumer finance firms to seek compulsory refunds for loans they took pre-2007 and which were often charged at more than 22%. This down trend in refunds is happening just in a nick of time for some firms, but too late for industry leader Takefuji which went bust last year. (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Aug 27, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110826D2608A14.htm -> Japanese M&A picks up steam The announcement by Asahi Group Holdings that it will buy Independent Liquor in New Zealand for US$1.3bn is a good example of the dramatic increase of overseas acquisitions by Japanese firms, thanks to the strong yen and easy lending conditions. Japanese international M&A activity is up 67% over FY2010, with 401 deals worth US$45bn already announced so far since January 1st. The top countries targeted by Japanese firms are Switzerland, the USA, and Brazil. ***Ed: A recent Nikkei article reckons that 80% of all earnings by listed companies as of March 31st, 2011, were derived from foreign earnings -- adequate proof that we are in the middle of a revolution in Japan's interaction with the rest of the world on a commercial level.** (Source: TT commentary from bloomberg.com, Aug 26, 2011) http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/08/19/asiainvbank-idUSL3E7J50IU20110819 -> Domestic demand to boost solar energy shipments 1,000% The Chairman of the Japan Photovoltaic Energy Association has announced that he reckons Japanese demand for solar cells will increase 10-fold in a "short period". The reason is because of the government incentives now offered to the producers of wind, solar, and geothermal power, which requires public power utilities to buy such alternative power at above-market rates. Apparently solar panel shipments are already 31% up in the 3 months ending June 2011, over the same period in FY2010. ***Ed: Solar energy accounts for just 2.9% of power consumed in Japan in 2010, compared to 15% in Germany, so we have lots of capacity to fill yet.** (Source: TT commentary from bloomberg.com, Aug 26, 2011) http://bloom.bg/omckiL NOTE: Broken links Many online news sources remove their articles after just a few days of posting them, thus breaking our links -- we apologize for the inconvenience. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CANDIDATE ROUND UP/VACANCIES => BiOS, a Division of the LINC Media group, is actively marketing the following positions for customers setting up or expanding in Japan, as well as other employers of bilinguals. ** HIGHLIGHTED POSITION BiOS is urgently looking for a Service Desk Manager with at least four years of experience as a helpdesk, service desk, or desktop manager, at our client?s office in the Kanagawa area. In this position, the candidate will be responsible for managing internal IT engineers so as to provide quality services to predominately Japanese clients. Delivery quality will be achieved by following SLAs, as well as by implementing ITIL Principles and IT industry best practices. You will also be responsible for developing, implementing, and controlling the IT change processes and asset management policies, based on global and local processes and procedures. Due to the technical nature and demanding work environment, this position is suitable for someone with solid experience as a helpdesk/service desk/desktop manager. In addition, since this role requires frequent direct negotiations and discussions with both staff and management-level business professionals, native-level Japanese and business-level English communication skills are also required. Remuneration is JPY6.5m ? JPY8m, depending on your experience and skill level. ** POSITIONS VACANT - Data Center Engineer, BiOS, JPY4M ? JPY5M - VoIP Engineer, global IT co, JPY5M ? JPY7M - Field Engineer, BiOS, JPY4M ? JPY5M - Vendor Manager, global insurance, JPY8M ? JPY10M - MAC Coordinator, global ibank, JPY4M ? JPY5M Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: tomohiro.kimura at biosjp.com ** BiOS Job Mail Every 2 weeks BiOS sends out a regular communication to its job seeking candidates, called BiOS Job Mail. Every edition carries a list of BiOS's current and most up-to-date vacancies, with each entry featuring a short job description and a direct link to the main entry on the BiOS home page. Regardless of whether you are unemployed and searching, thinking about a career change, or just curious to know if there is something out there that might suit you better, the BiOS Job Mail newsletter is an easy and convenient way for you to stay informed. If you would like to register for the BiOS Job Mail, or to find out more, please email kenji.sakota at biosjp.com. Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: tomohiro.kimura at biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ UPCOMING EVENTS/ANNOUNCEMENTS --------------- Start a Company in Japan ------------------ Entrepreneur's Handbook Seminar, 10th of September, 2011 If you have been considering setting up your own company, find out what it takes to make it successful. Terrie Lloyd, founder of over 17 start-up companies in Japan, will be giving an English-language seminar and Q and A on starting up a company in Japan. This is an ideal opportunity to find out what is involved, and to ask specific questions that are not normally answered in business books. All materials are in English and are Japan-focused. For more details: http://www.japaninc.com/entrepreneur_handbook_seminar ----------------------------------------------------------- --------------- Mate Rock Charity Concert ----------------- Australian Rock Legends come together to help Tohoku Featuring: Jimmy Barnes, the Angels, & Kevin Bloody Wilson! Hakuba 47, 10th of September, 2011. Mate Rock is a musical extravaganza to be held in Hakuba, a beautiful mountain village in the Japan Alps, about 3 hours from Tokyo. The concert will run from noon to early evening at the base of the 47 Ski Resort. Bring a rug and a picnic and enjoy a day of classic Australian rock in a spectacular natural setting. All proceeds of the concert will go to charities in Tohoku providing scholarships for children to study overseas. For information and bookings; www.materock.com ----------------------------------------------------------- --------------- ICA Event - September 15 ------------------ Speaker: Richard Rettig, Managing Director - Monoidics Japan Ltd. Title: Software - Friend or Foe Details: Complete event details at http://www.icajapan.jp/ (RSVP Required) Date: Thursday, September 15, 2011 Time: 6:30 Doors open, Buffet Dinner included and cash bar Cost: JPY4,000(members), JPY6,000(non-members) Open to all. Venue is The Foreign Correspondents' Club of Japan http://www.fccj.or.jp/aboutus/map ----------------------------------------------------------- --------------- Tohoku is Still in Need ------------------- The Japan Emergency Team arrived within hours of the disaster, at the Sendai City Office, and continues to operate in Tohoku. The team has delivered nearly 20,000 hot meals, repaired nearly 200 homes, and provided around 1,200 daily volunteers to help with the clean-up. The team is urgently in need of canned and instant food, bottled water, towels, and soap -- to be given out from its Disaster Relief Vehicle. Volunteers able to spend a minimum of one day are also urgently needed. Donations can be made via Post Office Furikae 00160 7 162438, Nihon Kinkyu Enjotai. www.jhelp.com or info at jhelp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CORRECTIONS/FEEDBACK In this section we run comments and corrections submitted by readers. We encourage you to spot our mistakes and amplify our points, by email, to editors at terrie.com. *** No feedback this issue. *********************************************************** END SUBSCRIBERS: 8,930 members as of Aug 28, 2011 (We purge our list regularly.) +++ ABOUT US STAFF Written by: Terrie Lloyd (terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com) HELP: E-mail Terrie-request at mailman.japaninc.com with the word 'help' in the subject or body (don't include the quotes), and you will get back a message with instructions. FEEDBACK Send letters (Feedback, Inquiries & Information) to the editor to terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com. ADVERTISING INFORMATION For more information on advertising in this newsletter, Contact ads at japaninc.com. SUBSCRIBE Get Terrie's Take by giving your name and email address at http://www.japaninc.com/newsletters/free_sign_up, or go straight to Mailman at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ Copyright 2011 Japan Inc. Communications Inc. ----------------- Japan Inc opens up Japan ---------------- J at pan Inc is Japan's only independently published English- language business website. Authoritatively chronicling online the business trends in Japan, each posting brings you in-depth analysis of business, people and technology in the world's second largest economy. Visit www.japaninc.com for the best business insight on Japan available. ----------------------------------------------------------- -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From terrie at mailman.japaninc.com Mon Sep 5 08:53:02 2011 From: terrie at mailman.japaninc.com (Terrie's Take) Date: Mon, 5 Sep 2011 08:53:02 +0900 Subject: Terrie's Take 628 -- McDonald's Food ATMs? e-biz news from Japan Message-ID: * * * * * * * * * T E R R I E 'S T A K E * * * * * * * A weekly roundup of news & information from Terrie Lloyd. (http://www.terrie.com) General Edition Sunday, September 04, 2011, Issue No. 628 +++ INDEX - What's New -- McDonald's Food ATMs? - News -- Hulu coming to Japan - Candidate Roundup/Vacancies - Upcoming Events - Corrections/Feedback - News Credits SUBSCRIBE to, UNSUBSCRIBE from Terrie's Take at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take, or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ ----------- UPGRADE TODAY TO PBXL IP TELEPHONY ------------ PBXL has the solution for your office. PBXL will purchase and dispose of your outdated, unsupported phone system and provide you with state-of-the-art Cisco VoIP telephony. Designed with scalable enterprise level functionality for companies ranging from two seats to two hundred, PBXL is the perfect cost-effective solution when opening an office, expanding a business, or rolling out a new BCP location. For additional information call us anytime at 03-4550-1600, e-mail us at info at pbxl.jp or visit http://en.pbxl.co.jp/ ------------ PBXL is BUSINESS COMMUNICATIONS -------------- +++ WHAT'S NEW Interesting article in the Nikkei this week about McDonald's Japan considering changing its business model somewhat so as to raise the efficiency and profitability of its workforce. In our minds, the issues confronting McDonalds Japan are the same as for many other service firms in the mature and now declining Japanese economy, and their actions will be worth watching and learning from. McDonald's Japan is a behemoth, with approximately 3,600 restaurants generating JPY324bn in revenues and JPY24bn net profit a year. The company says that compared to other countries the Japan operation trails far behind in profitability and something has to be done about it. Basically Japan has a profit margin of about 7% a year while Australia, for example, enjoys margins of around 15% or more. The Nikkei article says that this can mainly be put down to two things: the cost of labor and lower productivity of Japanese staff. The article in particular seems to blame both the part-time nature of staff and thus the need for constant retraining and relearning of tasks (since about 50% of its 150,000 part-timers turn over every year), and also potentially the over-servicing of customers, when the objective needs to be efficiency instead. For sure, McDonalds has its work cut out. Not that many kids in today's pampered droves are interested in making a career with a company where is it perceived that the pay is low, the work is hard and often unpleasant, and the opportunities limited. In addition, how do you beat out the culture of over-servicing a customer in favor of efficiency when it is bred into most Japanese kids since they were little? [Continued below...] -- NAGAMINE & MISHIMA - Securing Your Success in Japan --- Starting a new company in Japan? Looking to streamline your current operations? The team of bilingual experts at Nagamine & Mishima is able to provide high quality accounting, payroll and tax services that both exceed expectations and fit your budget. Our services help customers improve their operations and bottom line results. To find out more about our services and how we can help your business in Japan succeed, please visit our website www.nagamine-mishima.com or reach us directly by telephone at 03-3581-1975 or by email at info at nagamine-mishima.com. ---------- YOUR BOTTOM LINE IS OUR TOP PRIORITY------------ [...Article continues] In the manufacturing industry, versus services, one can simply decide to shutter a factory and start producing at a low-cost destination off-shore. It may not be morally easy, but more than 50% of Japanese manufacturers have already taken this step or are about to do so. A services company on the other hand (perhaps McDonalds with its global supply chain is a hybrid) is stuck with the staff it has, because in most cases it is the presence of people at the customer interface which makes it possible to do business -- and thus any further efficiency is necessarily focused on how to get more output from those people for the same or lower price. As a rule of thumb, in Japan, service businesses count about 80% of their costs as the cost of people. As far as we can see, the efficiency challenge for McDonalds Japan can be boiled down to the following solutions: 1. Use less people by making the production system more efficient (IT, ergonomics, pre-preparation of materials, etc.) 2. Use less people by lowering service standards or by having customers do some of the work themselves (think airline kiosks replacing check-in counter staff). 3. Pay the people less (call upon staff to sacrifice for the company -- many Japanese firms are doing this). 4. Find people who are motivated to work as hard but accept less pay, such as foreign workers. 5. Pay people with something other than cash (bring back the post-war barter systems). 6. Find a way to move people to a low-cost location and still offer the same service as now (remote operations) It seems that McDonalds Japan is going to try most of these ideas for itself. For example, the company continues to invest hugely in IT and ergonomics, to ensure that kitchens are fast, and that information is received at the right place at the right time. Impressively, the company has apparently spent about JPY30bn in the last 7 years to develop a 20m person database of customers who, in terms of discounts and coupons, can now automate their business experience using cell phones at the store. The Nikkei article also hints that the company plans to try to assign some restaurant staff to overseas operations, so as to let them see for themselves how a profitable store should be run. However, we see this program presenting a number of challenges. For example, efficiency abroad is probably traded for customer "feel-good" over-servicing, so how will that translate back here in Japan? Also, given the large number of people working in McDonalds and the high turnover, will the few people the company can afford to send abroad make any noticeable difference? We suspect not. Probably better that McDonalds start a company-wide internal personal development course and use that to change employee mindsets. Another solution to get profits up is to "pay" employees with barter. Following on from a successful example in Australia, McDonalds Japan appears to be looking to offer employees certain rights and privileges that are designed to supplement otherwise undesirable salaries. This is a good idea if they can pull it off. Apparently McDonalds Australia has tied up with 300 other companies in a network of merchants, to provide employee buying privileges, and we're sure that McDonalds Japan can organize at least this number of collaborating firms here. Thus being an employee of McDonald's will give you the right to buy at discounts elsewhere -- but will that really be motivating? Perhaps if you're poor enough, it might. But so would simply collecting the unemployment benefit and using an Internet discounts tracking service. In a way, this barter idea harks back to the 1950s and 1960's when Japanese companies still under earnings pressure and paying out low salaries, would make life better for their people by offering very low-cost/no-cost employee housing, insurance, health, and even arranged marriages. McDonald's solution will be cheaper for the company, since it will not need to lay out any upfront investment to arrange the privileges for employees. However, we suspect that if they persist in this direction the program may wind up feeding on itself. As other companies follow suit, the competition will be on to start offering more meaningful barters/discounts, and that could get a lot more expensive. Another way to cut employee costs, which has been successfully implemented by convenience stores around the nation, has been to replace expensive Japanese employees with lower cost foreign ones. This is nothing new of course, and long gone are the days when we were surprised to find a foreign name tag on our server. But try as we might, we can't find any data online about how many foreigners McDonalds Japan is employing, and our guess it isn't many. This would seem an obvious way to reduce costs, and one that is possible through the "trainee" visas still widely available. In the future, if one considers the end game of all this efficiency effort, we can only conclude that McDonalds will follow the same path that banks and airlines have. Your server will be a McFood "ATM," with a Disney character to make it look friendly. The fact that it will offer free character stickers and no queue will ensure people use it. At the back end, and when things go wrong, the ATM will offer you "error handling" service in a slightly foreign accent, and the person behind that accent will be located in Dalian, China. That same person, in order to ensure maximum efficiency, will probably also be working a computer console checking that the Chicken McNuggets chute is clear of food jams and cross checking the temperature and humidity of the restaurant to ensure customers don't hang around inside the restaurant too long. ...The information janitors/ ***------------------------****-------------------------*** --------- BIOS - Bilingual IT Systems and Support --------- BiOS full-service IT solutions has a new service. Now the largest independently owned bilingual IT support company in Tokyo, BiOS offers some of the most competitive services available to multinationals whether large or small. Data Center staff and managed services, Help Desk, desktop, and network support. Server virtualization, cloud computing hosting and solutions, and general software development. For more information on these and other SI and IT services, in English or Japanese: Phone: (03) 4588-2220, Email: solutions at biosjp.com Web: www.biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ NEWS - Hulu coming to Japan - Tesco bested by Japanese competitors - "Oh, we had enough power after all" - Loan moratorium companies still going under - Who will ANZ buy in Japan? -> Hulu coming to Japan The popular online movies/tv streaming service, Hulu, is apparently coming to Japan as its first overseas foray. The company already has 1m paying subscribers to Hulu Plus in the USA, and is planning to offer the same service here as well. It will cost around JPY1,480 per month and programs are broadcast without advertising. ***Ed: One hopes that they remember to put an English option on the Japanese product, for all the non-Japanese in town who are likely to be early subscribers.** (Source: TT commentary from independent.co.uk, Sep 3, 2011) http://ind.pn/oXz6Kd -> Tesco bested by Japanese competitors Sometimes being one of the biggest in the world just isn't enough, especially when venturing into the bastion of customer service and competition -- the Japanese market. Tesco has now decided after 8 years and JPY35bn of investment that it has had enough and is looking to pull out of Japan. ***Ed: Apparently Tesco is going to try to sell the business, but with just 129 stores, most of which are small and under-performing, we doubt they will get much for them.** (Source: TT commentary from smh.com.au, Sep 2, 2011) http://bit.ly/nyEPaD -> "Oh, we had enough power after all" We're not sure whether it's cause for celebration of Japan's ability to "gaman" or not, but in any case, consumers and industry really rose to the call when told that they had to suffer for the sake of the country, by not using air conditioners. We did our bit, sweating it out many a day at the office. Now it turns out that TEPCO has more than 35% power reserves and the power saving measures will be ended September 9th. (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Sep 3, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110902D0209N04.htm -> Loan moratorium companies still going under Thanks to one-time banking minister Shizuka Kamei's brainwave to have the government guarantee loans to Japan's many struggling SME companies, there are apparently now about 1.15m cases of companies who have received loan repayment moratoriums since the end of 2009. Despite these companies in most cases only repaying interest, still an increasing number of them are going out of business according to debt research firm Tokyo Shoko Research. The firm says that from Jan to Aug 83 such firms with liabilities of JPY64.8bn went under, about double the number of companies and double the debt from last year. ***Ed: These loan guarantees are a huge hidden liability for Japan, that many foreign economists are not aware of. One can imagine that the total sum of guarantees is probably around JPY1trn-JPY2trn.** (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Sep 3, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110902D0209A19.htm -> Who will ANZ buy in Japan? Based on media reports about ANZ being interested in buying part or all of Aozora Bank here in Japan, the shares of Aozora rose for a while, before falling back. However, a report out of Australia says that ANZ is actually looking at more than one target in Japan, and is also considering buying distressed Lone Star-owned Tokyo Star Bank. ANZ says it wants an acquisition in Japan so that it can tap the "massive liquidity pools" in Japan. ***Ed: Certainly going after Aozora would give ANZ access to savings of all the member banks related to Aozora. Not sure that they would get anywhere the same benefit from Tokyo Star Bank, though -- although TSB will be a lot cheaper.** (Source: TT commentary from money-au.com.au, Sep 1, 2011) http://bit.ly/mZfKzb NOTE: Broken links Many online news sources remove their articles after just a few days of posting them, thus breaking our links -- we apologize for the inconvenience. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CANDIDATE ROUND UP/VACANCIES => BiOS, a Division of the LINC Media group, is actively marketing the following positions for customers setting up or expanding in Japan, as well as other employers of bilinguals. ** HIGHLIGHTED POSITION BiOS is urgently looking for an Project Management Officer with experience managing overall processes of localizing insurance-related software at our client?s office in the Tokyo area. The candidate will be responsible for implementing project scopes and workflows of software implementation and localization process, as well as working closely with engineers, on-site managers, vendors, clients, and other significant stakeholders to make the software as a core resource which can be shared all office branches in Japan and possibly in APAC region. You will also be responsible for preparing documentations for internal/external use which relates to the projects in terms of both technology and business side. Due to the technical nature and demanding work environment, this position is suitable for someone with solid experience of project management which relates to development of insurance software. In addition, since this role requires direct negotiations with both Japanese and international professionals from clients, business-level communication skills in English and fluent-level communication skills in Japanese will be required. Remuneration is JPY9m ? JPY14m depending on your experience and skill level. ** POSITIONS VACANT - Field Engineer, BiOS, JPY4M ? JPY5M - IMAC Engineer, global ibank, JPY4M ? JPY4.5M - VoIP Engineer, global bank, JPY6M ? JPY8M - Service Manager, software co, JPY6M ? JPY7M - MAC Coordinator, global ibank, JPY4M ? JPY4.5M Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: tomohiro.kimura at biosjp.com ** BiOS Job Mail Every 2 weeks BiOS sends out a regular communication to its job seeking candidates, called BiOS Job Mail. Every edition carries a list of BiOS's current and most up-to-date vacancies, with each entry featuring a short job description and a direct link to the main entry on the BiOS home page. Regardless of whether you are unemployed and searching, thinking about a career change, or just curious to know if there is something out there that might suit you better, the BiOS Job Mail newsletter is an easy and convenient way for you to stay informed. If you would like to register for the BiOS Job Mail, or to find out more, please email kenji.sakota at biosjp.com. Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: tomohiro.kimura at biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ UPCOMING EVENTS/ANNOUNCEMENTS --------------- Mate Rock Charity Concert ----------------- Australian Rock Legends come together to help Tohoku Featuring: Jimmy Barnes, the Angels, & Kevin Bloody Wilson! Hakuba 47, 10th of September, 2011. Mate Rock is a musical extravaganza to be held in Hakuba, a beautiful mountain village in the Japan Alps, about 3 hours from Tokyo. The concert will run from noon to early evening at the base of the 47 Ski Resort. Bring a rug and a picnic and enjoy a day of classic Australian rock in a spectacular natural setting. All proceeds of the concert will go to charities in Tohoku providing scholarships for children to study overseas. For information and bookings; www.materock.com ----------------------------------------------------------- --------------- ICA Event - September 15 ------------------ Speaker: Richard Rettig, Managing Director - Monoidics Japan Ltd. Title: Software - Friend or Foe Details: Complete event details at http://www.icajapan.jp/ (RSVP Required) Date: Thursday, September 15, 2011 Time: 6:30 Doors open, Buffet Dinner included and cash bar Cost: JPY4,000(members), JPY6,000(non-members) Open to all. Venue is The Foreign Correspondents' Club of Japan http://www.fccj.or.jp/aboutus/map ----------------------------------------------------------- --------------- Tohoku is Still in Need ------------------- The Japan Emergency Team arrived within hours of the disaster, at the Sendai City Office, and continues to operate in Tohoku. The team has delivered nearly 20,000 hot meals, repaired nearly 200 homes, and provided around 1,200 daily volunteers to help with the clean-up. The team is urgently in need of canned and instant food, bottled water, towels, and soap -- to be given out from its Disaster Relief Vehicle. Volunteers able to spend a minimum of one day are also urgently needed. Donations can be made via Post Office Furikae 00160 7 162438, Nihon Kinkyu Enjotai. www.jhelp.com or info at jhelp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CORRECTIONS/FEEDBACK In this section we run comments and corrections submitted by readers. We encourage you to spot our mistakes and amplify our points, by email, to editors at terrie.com. *** No feedback this issue. *********************************************************** END SUBSCRIBERS: 8,836 members as of Sep 04, 2011 (We purge our list regularly.) +++ ABOUT US STAFF Written by: Terrie Lloyd (terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com) HELP: E-mail Terrie-request at mailman.japaninc.com with the word 'help' in the subject or body (don't include the quotes), and you will get back a message with instructions. FEEDBACK Send letters (Feedback, Inquiries & Information) to the editor to terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com. ADVERTISING INFORMATION For more information on advertising in this newsletter, Contact ads at japaninc.com. SUBSCRIBE Get Terrie's Take by giving your name and email address at http://www.japaninc.com/newsletters/free_sign_up, or go straight to Mailman at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ Copyright 2011 Japan Inc. Communications Inc. ----------------- Japan Inc opens up Japan ---------------- J at pan Inc is Japan's only independently published English- language business website. Authoritatively chronicling online the business trends in Japan, each posting brings you in-depth analysis of business, people and technology in the world's second largest economy. Visit www.japaninc.com for the best business insight on Japan available. ----------------------------------------------------------- -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From terrie at mailman.japaninc.com Mon Sep 12 08:04:51 2011 From: terrie at mailman.japaninc.com (Terrie's Take) Date: Mon, 12 Sep 2011 08:04:51 +0900 Subject: Terrie's Take 629 -- Small Companies Get in on M&A Trend, e-biz news from Japan Message-ID: * * * * * * * * * T E R R I E 'S T A K E * * * * * * * A weekly roundup of news & information from Terrie Lloyd. (http://www.terrie.com) General Edition Sunday, September 11, 2011, Issue No. 629 +++ INDEX - What's New -- Small Companies Get in on M&A Trend - News -- Israeli drug mule gets acquittal - Candidate Roundup/Vacancies - Upcoming Events - Corrections/Feedback -- NOT a fan of McDonalds - News Credits SUBSCRIBE to, UNSUBSCRIBE from Terrie's Take at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take, or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ ----------- UPGRADE TODAY TO PBXL IP TELEPHONY ------------ PBXL has the solution for your office. PBXL will purchase and dispose of your outdated, unsupported phone system and provide you with state-of-the-art Cisco VoIP telephony. Designed with scalable enterprise level functionality for companies ranging from two seats to two hundred, PBXL is the perfect cost-effective solution when opening an office, expanding a business, or rolling out a new BCP location. For additional information call us anytime at 03-4550-1600, e-mail us at info at pbxl.jp or visit http://en.pbxl.co.jp/ ------------ PBXL is BUSINESS COMMUNICATIONS -------------- +++ WHAT'S NEW The world is watching the steady march of Japanese companies abroad, and the surge of big-number M&A's. As we mentioned in TT-627 several weeks ago, Japanese international M&A activity is up 67% over last year, with 401 deals worth around US$45bn being done between January and July. The Nikkei reckons that about 80% of all listed firms' earnings now comes from abroad, not from their moribund domestic businesses. While all attention is on the big numbers, there is plenty of action going on at the lower levels as well. One such example is a smallish (as far as Japanese multinationals go) Osaka firm called Endo Lighting. Run by a Mr. Endo, naturally. This company had sales last year of JPY18.3bn and is currently the largest LED lighting manufacturer in Japan in the commercial lighting space. It has about 30% market share. Endo Lighting is a perfect case study of the hollowing out of the Japanese electrical manufacturing sector over the last two decades, having set up a small factory in Thailand back in 1989, then based on that experience much bigger ones in China in 2003 and again in 2005. The firm appears to have been through some rough times in the last three years, and in February 2009 its shares were worth just JPY105. That was the fiscal year that Endo Lighting lost JPY1.3bn, so it's no wonder its shares tanked. You would have been happy to buy in at that point, though, because now the company has since clawed its way back to profitability, and the shares are up 1,000%. It does help that the demand for energy-saving LED lighting has soared since the earthquake and is likely to stay that way. Indeed, since June, LED bulbs have been outselling incandescent ones in Japan. [Continued below...] -- NAGAMINE & MISHIMA - Securing Your Success in Japan --- Starting a new company in Japan? Looking to streamline your current operations? The team of bilingual experts at Nagamine & Mishima is able to provide high quality accounting, payroll and tax services that both exceed expectations and fit your budget. Our services help customers improve their operations and bottom line results. To find out more about our services and how we can help your business in Japan succeed, please visit our website www.nagamine-mishima.com or reach us directly by telephone at 03-3581-1975 or by email at info at nagamine-mishima.com. ---------- YOUR BOTTOM LINE IS OUR TOP PRIORITY------------ [...Article continues] There is very little information available on Endo Lighting as a company, even though it's listed, but what drew our attention was the fact that after having a close call with death, the firm is once again riding high, and announced this last week that it was going to buy out a small lighting distributor in the USA for JPY850m. Endo Lighting says that it plans to turn the acquired company, called Icon International, into a platform for distribution of its products into the US market. The company says, possibly somewhat optimistically, that it expects to lift Icon's sales from around JPY940m last year to JPY10bn over the next three years. They're not disclosing how they are going to do this, but what is amazing to us is the speed of Endo's turn-around, and also the fact that they can pull together JPY850m in cash to do an M&A at a time when the US market has to be hurting. Either Endo Lighting has a secret treasure stash, or the banks are sufficiently eager to lend money to anyone with a positive P&L and a plan for the future that involves international earnings. We suspect the second option is the likely one. The fact is that money for M&A by Japanese firms is easy to come by, costing a firm like Endo Lighting all of 1% or so per annum for a 10-year loan. This is low enough that with Icon making an operating profit of around 15% (US$1.5m) in FY2010, this deal will give Endo Lighting around JPY140m of new profit annually, representing a helpful 20% increase over Endo's mainly Japan-based earnings last year. Not bad for one modest M&A. This kind of leveraging, buying new profit streams for a fraction of the financing cost, and having your own major production facilities in China, is the template of choice for Japanese manufacturers these days, and everyone from pharmaceuticals to LED lighting makers is doing it. The banks presumably understand the value being unlocked with each M&A loan and have decided to make substantial funds available even for the small-to-mid-sized guys such as Endo Lighting. If the markets continue to hold in their current pattern and do not take a deep dive again, then we can expect to see a lot more smaller M&As such as this one, and a massive increase in profits overall for Japanese firms. Whether they repatriate these profits to Japan or use them to continue pursuing a growth strategy abroad is of course a big question the Japanese government is trying to find answers for. Anyway, the surge in M&As across the board is also having an electrifying effect on business consultants overseas, and interest in Japanese firms as acquirers is at an all-time high. If we were in the M&A consulting business, we would most certainly be talking to any company owner in the USA or Europe with positive cash flow, a reliable business history, and a strong product distribution business. Right now there have to be thousands of small-to-medium sized Japanese manufacturing firms who are watching compatriots like Endo Lighting and are drawing the conclusion that they have to follow suit or die out. The going rate for such consultants is also very attractive, so deal flow is pretty much guaranteed. In some cases they are on retainers from the Japanese buy side, searching for acquisitions and typically are drawing JPY300,000 or so per month retainer, plus a percentage of any deals that go through. To operate on this side of the fence, the consultants are typically Japanese and are on close personal terms with their sponsors. On the US sell side, the field is far more open and the rate for putting a deal together appears to be around 5% for deals under US$10m, and a number dropping to around 1% on deals over US$50m. Bilingual capability seems to be less important than does the consultant's personal track record and their business network for finding deals. The challenge for US based consultants is of course finding a route in to a suitable buyer back here in Japan. Often going through the front door is greeted with skepticism or suspicion by the Japanese side, not to mention the cost and time needed to visit 50 companies to find 1-2 interested parties. We're cheering on the M&A wave because we believe this is Japan's best chance to internationalize its SMEs, which employ 80% of the nation's working population. Japan has a history of performing in times of extreme pressure, and in a fight for survival the pressure has never been greater for small businesses. The cross-border opportunities associated with this ground shift in company strategy and behavior will also start to become clear, leading, we think, to a substantially increased demand for foreign employees and services in Japan. ************* Lastly, a comment about Metropolis' new online wine shop, produced by the owners of Village Cellars under a new brand called WineBuzz. If you like new world wines, then you should check out the shop, at: http://shop.metropolis.co.jp/ We love Chardonnay, and bought a mixed half dozen, which arrived just a day and a half later at the office. Wine Buzz has a great selection of Chardonnays and the one that we're going to definitely buy again was the Tasmanian 9th Island -- a little oak, light but balanced acidity from the low temperature location, extremely drinkable, and just JPY2,500 a bottle. Yum. http://bit.ly/rnN318 ...The information janitors/ ***------------------------****-------------------------*** --------- BIOS - Bilingual IT Systems and Support --------- BiOS full-service IT solutions has a new service. Now the largest independently owned bilingual IT support company in Tokyo, BiOS offers some of the most competitive services available to multinationals whether large or small. Data Center staff and managed services, Help Desk, desktop, and network support. Server virtualization, cloud computing hosting and solutions, general software development. For more information on these and other SI and IT services, in English or Japanese: Phone: (03) 4588-2220, Email: solutions at biosjp.com Web: www.biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ NEWS - JPY500bn to keep companies in Japan - Sale of state assets to pay quake recovery bills - Israeli drug mule gets acquittal - Ritz-Carlton expands in Japan - Consumers redeem gold for cash -> JPY500bn to keep companies in Japan The government is concerned that the high yen, up an additional 5% against the US dollar since June, is accelerating the hollowing out of industrial production from Japan, as companies set up overseas manufacturing facilities to overcome the yen appreciation. The government says that it will set aside JPY500bn in the third budget of the year, to address the problem. ***Ed: The high yen is what it is, and subsidies alone will not keep companies producing here. What is needed instead is substantial tax cuts, as Keidanren has been asking for some time now, and subsidies on consumer items based on technologies the government wants to promote, such as autos and solar panels.** (Source: TT commentary from reuters.com, Sep 9, 2011) http://af.reuters.com/article/energyOilNews/idAFL3E7K91GH20110909 -> Sale of state assets to pay quake recovery bills Given the unpopularity of tax increases, the government is trying to find other ways to meet the JPY13trn price tag put on reconstruction efforts for Tohoku after the March 11 earthquake. Assets apparently being considered for sale include holdings in Japan Post, Japan Tobacco, and a variety of other companies. The total value of all shares is around JPY22trn, while the Japan Post and Japan Tobacco holdings are worth about JPY9.6trn and JPY1.7trn respectively. (Source: TT commentary from marketwatch.com, Sep 8, 2011) http://bit.ly/nIS7eS -> Israeli drug mule gets acquittal In a historic first for the Japanese courts, an Israeli drug mule was acquitted of trafficking charges thanks to expert testimony from a US witness. The witness testified that a young man of the satmar hassidic faith would be highly unlikely to traffic drugs and that this type of person is a frequent target elsewhere in the world by drug traffickers because of their naivety. So frequent, in fact, that the phenomenon is the object of academic studies. Unfortunately for the man's two companions, who did not use the same defense approach, they were convicted and are now languishing in a Japanese jail. ***Ed: We assume that there will be appeals from the other two, so that they can use the same defense used by their luckier companion.** (Source: TT commentary from digitaljournal.com, Sep 9, 2011) http://www.digitaljournal.com/pr/416020 -> Ritz-Carlton expands in Japan It may be tough times for hoteliers at the moment, but the forward thinkers amongst them are nonetheless looking to a turn-around in the tourism market in years to come. One such firm is the Ritz-Carlton, which apparently has signed two new hotel management agreements with property owners. Interestingly, but perhaps not surprisingly, the Ritz-Carlton is picking Kyoto and Okinawa as its two new locations, expanding on the current Tokyo and Osaka hotels. ***Ed: Their target is primarily wealthy Japanese, although we're sure that mainland and HK Chinese travelers will fit in there as well...** (Source: TT commentary from asiatraveltips.com, Sep 9, 2011) http://www.asiatraveltips.com/news11/99-HotelsinJapan.shtml -> Consumers redeem gold for cash While the rest of the world is focusing on buying gold as a value hedge in case a currency war (think Swiss Franc, Euro, and US Dollar) happens, in Japan the Nikkei reports that the opposite trend is happening -- consumers are cashing in their gold. The article names a number of major gold buying firms who have bought a ton or more of gold jewelry so far this year, which will be melted down for resale. The National Institute for Materials Science reckons that Japanese consumers are sitting on around 1,500 tons of gold, while Gold Fields Mineral Services in the UK says that Japan consumed 18.5 tons for jewelry in the last ten years. Clearly, then, most of this gold was accumulated back in the 60's-80's, and represents yet another form of untapped savings for the Japanese. (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Sep 9, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110909D09HH266.htm NOTE: Broken links Many online news sources remove their articles after just a few days of posting them, thus breaking our links -- we apologize for the inconvenience. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CANDIDATE ROUND UP/VACANCIES => BiOS, a Division of the LINC Media group, is actively marketing the following positions for customers setting up or expanding in Japan, as well as other employers of bilinguals. ** HIGHLIGHTED POSITION BiOS is urgently looking for an Project Manager with experience managing office/IT Infrastructure setup as a part of a BCP project at our client?s office in the Tokyo area. The candidate will be responsible for building an IT infrastructure for the client?s corporate office by setting up desktops, laptops, telecommunication equipment, monitors, and other equipment, as well as coordinating with data center engineers regarding servers and network matters. You will also be responsible for reporting project scope to internal managers and clients as a first point of contact. Due to the technical nature and demanding work environment, this position is suitable for someone with solid experience managing BCP (office IT infrastructure) projects. In addition, since this role requires direct negotiations with both Japanese and international clients, business-level communication skills in English and fluent-level communication skills in Japanese will be required. Remuneration is JPY7m ? JPY11m depending on your experience and skill level. ** POSITIONS VACANT - Service Manager, global IT co, JPY5M ? JPY7M - Project Mgr (BCP Project), global IT co, JPY8M ? JPY10M - Junior Account Manager, BiOS, JPY3.5M ? JPY4.5M - SysAdmin (Linux/Unix/Win), global IT co, JPY6M ? JPY8M - VoIP Engineer, global IT co, JPY6M ? JPY8M Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: tomohiro.kimura at biosjp.com ** BiOS Job Mail Every 2 weeks BiOS sends out a regular communication to its job seeking candidates, called BiOS Job Mail. Every edition carries a list of BiOS's current and most up-to-date vacancies, with each entry featuring a short job description and a direct link to the main entry on the BiOS home page. Regardless of whether you are unemployed and searching, thinking about a career change, or just curious to know if there is something out there that might suit you better, the BiOS Job Mail newsletter is an easy and convenient way for you to stay informed. If you would like to register for the BiOS Job Mail, or to find out more, please email kenji.sakota at biosjp.com. Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: tomohiro.kimura at biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ UPCOMING EVENTS/ANNOUNCEMENTS --------- Japan's Most Popular Leadership Training -------- Japan's most popular leadership training is called Action Learning, and was pioneered by Professor Reginald Revans of the UK in the 1940's. A published expert in the field of Action Learning is Dr. Michael Marquardt, Prof at George Washington University, DC. Dr. Marquardt will personally be in Japan, conducting a series of seminars for major Japanese corporations, and has agreed to do a single presentation for foreign managers as well. Hear how Action Learning can transform your work force. Title: "Impact of Action Learning: What difference are we making in the world? Speaker: Dr. Marquardt, President of World Institute for Action Learning Date: October 27, 2011, 10:00-13:00(13:30) Venue: Tokyo American Club (Tokyo, Japan) Fee: JPY15,000 (including lunch) Contact: info at ldcjp.com Tel: 03-6809-1144 (English-Gledis Action Learning) Tel: 03-6680-2698 (Japanese) http://www.ldcjp.com/seminar/20111027M.html ----------------------------------------------------------- --------------- Mate Rock Charity Concert ----------------- Australian Rock Legends come together to help Tohoku Featuring: Jimmy Barnes, the Angels, & Kevin Bloody Wilson! Hakuba 47, 10th of September, 2011. Mate Rock is a musical extravaganza to be held in Hakuba, a beautiful mountain village in the Japan Alps, about 3 hours from Tokyo. The concert will run from noon to early evening at the base of the 47 Ski Resort. Bring a rug and a picnic and enjoy a day of classic Australian rock in a spectacular natural setting. All proceeds of the concert will go to charities in Tohoku providing scholarships for children to study overseas. For information and bookings; www.materock.com ----------------------------------------------------------- --------------- ICA Event - September 15 ------------------ Speaker: Richard Rettig, Managing Director - Monoidics Japan Ltd. Title: Software - Friend or Foe Details: Complete event details at http://www.icajapan.jp/ (RSVP Required) Date: Thursday, September 15, 2011 Time: 6:30 Doors open, Buffet Dinner included and cash bar Cost: JPY4,000(members), JPY6,000(non-members) Open to all. Venue is The Foreign Correspondents' Club of Japan http://www.fccj.or.jp/aboutus/map ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CORRECTIONS/FEEDBACK In this section we run comments and corrections submitted by readers. We encourage you to spot our mistakes and amplify our points, by email, to editors at terrie.com. *** In TT628 we looked at how McDonalds is likely to boost their profitability given that they feel their worker productivity is too low in Japan. We got some strong and interesting feedback, including the following email. => Reader says: I've been reading your blog for quite some time with a high regard for your acumen but your piece on MacDonalds [sic] is so far out of whack it definitely takes the cake. Why don't you start off by comparing their profitability with the competitors here in Japan? Comparing it with Australia is like apples and oranges. The minimum wage in Australia is $14.25/hr, Canada is $11 depending on the province and $10.40 in New Zealand, 6 pounds in the UK. But in Japan it ranges from 642 to 821 yen. So wages are not the big drag on profits. Rather, maybe it is other overheads that are impacting the bottom line. Indeed, maybe the management is taking too high a cut, maybe their incredibly expensive computer applications or other "business improvement" systems have had too high an investment with little to show for it. Maybe it's their cut-throat pricing?? Have you compared their pricings here to what they sell their food for in Australia? Macdonalds is the only fast food chain that I know of in Japan that "rents" their uniforms out to the kids who are working there. And about the high staff turnover?? Why on earth do you automatically criticize the kids. Have you actually seen any data that pinpoints the range of reasons. Maybe some of them are Macdonalds doings and the kids are quite justified in leaving. And what is Macdonald's like to work for?? Do you know?? So other than the kids who work there, you're haranguing again about the "unnecessary" and superfluous levels of service in Japan? So what? You advise to change the market for the benefit of one company? Do you think for one second these levels of service weren't developed by the companies themselves here? They've trained the consumers to expect these levels and now they have to meet them. That's free-enterprise at it's roots, isn't it? If macdonalds decides to leave the land of the fatted cow (and they won't with all the money they're making) so what? They wouldn't be the first of failed foreign companies here and they sure won't be the last. Maybe some of their more successful Japanese competitors will start marking up Macdonalds' markets outside Japan. So, finally you want to exploit imported labour to cut the already non-survival wages? How much? What sub-standard wage do you propose so poor Mac can pull himself up by his sainted boot straps and make a glorious 15% margin in Japan? Do you think you want to work those hours for that stipend? Would you like your wife, teenager or non-teen-age kid to work for the big Mac? Why not? *** We respond: Thanks for your feedback. We think you have the wrong end of the stick here. Firstly, the comments about profitability and Australia were from a piece that the Nikkei did with the McDonalds CEO here in Japan, and most of the key points were points that they themselves brought up. The Take was to fill in some of the gaps and to use that as a means of highlighting what all services companies are asking themselves -- about how to compete in this declining market and how to increase margins. We don't eat at McDonalds and we certainly don't have a high opinion of their menu and dominance. But they do know how to make money and in this regard will act as a scout/guinea pig for many others trying to emulate them. The point about wages was not that the kids are overpaid. We never said they are. The point is that as a services business, wages make up 80% of the costs of the business and so wages are the only real area that can be attacked from a business viewpoint. We'd have thought it was obvious that we were making this point when coming up with the list of things that could be done about wages. Anyway, our objective was not to laud or judge McDonalds, but to basically show that it's interesting the challenges faced by services companies like them, and the way that they are likely to go in the future to seek more profit. Do they deserve to make more profits? That's not something we're concerned with, they'll do it no matter what you or we think. *********************************************************** END SUBSCRIBERS: 8,841 members as of Sep 11, 2011 (We purge our list regularly.) +++ ABOUT US STAFF Written by: Terrie Lloyd (terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com) HELP: E-mail Terrie-request at mailman.japaninc.com with the word 'help' in the subject or body (don't include the quotes), and you will get back a message with instructions. FEEDBACK Send letters (Feedback, Inquiries & Information) to the editor to terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com. ADVERTISING INFORMATION For more information on advertising in this newsletter, Contact ads at japaninc.com. SUBSCRIBE Get Terrie's Take by giving your name and email address at http://www.japaninc.com/newsletters/free_sign_up, or go straight to Mailman at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ Copyright 2011 Japan Inc. Communications Inc. ----------------- Japan Inc opens up Japan ---------------- J at pan Inc is Japan's only independently published English- language business website. Authoritatively chronicling online the business trends in Japan, each posting brings you in-depth analysis of business, people and technology in the world's second largest economy. Visit www.japaninc.com for the best business insight on Japan available. ----------------------------------------------------------- -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From terrie at mailman.japaninc.com Mon Sep 19 09:32:48 2011 From: terrie at mailman.japaninc.com (Terrie's Take) Date: Mon, 19 Sep 2011 09:32:48 +0900 Subject: Terrie's Take 630 -- Rare Animals as Pets in Japan -- e-biz news from Japan Message-ID: * * * * * * * * * T E R R I E 'S T A K E * * * * * * * A weekly roundup of news & information from Terrie Lloyd. (http://www.terrie.com) General Edition Sunday, September 18, 2011, Issue No. 630 +++ INDEX - What's New -- Rare Animals as Pets in Japan - News -- Tax hikes in 2012 - Candidate Roundup/Vacancies - Upcoming Events - Corrections/Feedback -- More on Drug Mule acquittal - News Credits SUBSCRIBE to, UNSUBSCRIBE from Terrie's Take at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take, or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ ----------- UPGRADE TODAY TO PBXL IP TELEPHONY ------------ PBXL has the solution for your office. PBXL will purchase and dispose of your outdated, unsupported phone system and provide you with state-of-the-art Cisco VoIP telephony. Designed with scalable enterprise level functionality for companies ranging from two seats to two hundred, PBXL is the perfect cost-effective solution when opening an office, expanding a business, or rolling out a new BCP location. For additional information call us anytime at 03-4550-1600, e-mail us at info at pbxl.jp or visit http://en.pbxl.co.jp/ ------------ PBXL is BUSINESS COMMUNICATIONS -------------- +++ WHAT'S NEW Taking advantage of the long weekend and with the weather still being so hot and all, it seemed like a good idea to take an cycle ride through the local park, which for us is Yoyogi Koen. The thing that strikes you about almost any urban park in Tokyo is the number of people taking pets for a walk, versus kids. No surprise really, given that there are more dogs (in 2009 12.3m) than kids under the age of 12 in Japan. You get to see some interesting pets being taken for a walk in the park. Yoyogi is a favorite for tortoise owners, and there is one lady who religiously takes her tortoise for a walk every morning -- we always see her in the same spot, even after an hour's work out... ;-). Actually, the ponds in Yoyogi Koen are also a favorite for pet owners whose turtles have outgrown their apartments, to be set free. The reptiles get discovered in late Fall when the park maintenance people drain the ponds. We've also seen ferrets, all kinds of birds, small monkeys, and other kinds of pets at the park. This got us to thinking about the Japanese passion for unusual pets and pets in general. The most popular pets for Japanese are dogs then cats. The Japan Pet Food Association (JPFA) reckons that in 2009 there were 12.3m dogs and 10m cats. The Ministry of Health says that there were 6.88m registered dogs in the same year, so obviously many dogs sold are not registered. Nor, as we found out, are they microchipped. According to the authority controlling such things, AIPO, only 369,860 dogs in Japan were microchipped as of March 2011, a compliance rate of just 0.25% of the overall population. [Continued below...] -- NAGAMINE & MISHIMA - Securing Your Success in Japan --- Starting a new company in Japan? Looking to streamline your current operations? The team of bilingual experts at Nagamine & Mishima is able to provide high quality accounting, payroll and tax services that both exceed expectations and fit your budget. Our services help customers improve their operations and bottom line results. To find out more about our services and how we can help your business in Japan succeed, please visit our website www.nagamine-mishima.com or reach us directly by telephone at 03-3581-1975 or by email at info at nagamine-mishima.com. ---------- YOUR BOTTOM LINE IS OUR TOP PRIORITY------------ [...Article continues] We did some research on the more unusual creatures available for sale, most of which come from online pet stores. A popular but endangered animal is the Slow Loris, (Nycticebus coucang), a nocturnal, tree-climbing primate native to Southeast Asia. These little guys are really cute and for that reason are most often bought by women. Probably if those women knew that the species has a toxic bite and that they are cruelly de-toothed by pet traders prior to sale, they wouldn't support the trade. At present you can buy a Slow Loris for JPY300,000 to JPY400,000. Another very cute animal that is zooming up the popularity charts is the Fennec Fox from the Arabian Peninsular and North Africa. The Fennec Fox weighs just 1.5kg and has huge 15cm+ ears that make it look like the Disney Stitch character. These animals are not endangered, and in the USA are actually one of only two types of fox that are approved to be kept as a pet. They are rared by removing from the mother at an early age, so as to restrain the development of natural aggressive characteristics. After such raring they can apparently be kept in an apartment, much like a dog or cat. You can buy Fennec Foxes for around JPY700,000 for a male and JPY800,000 for a female. Other rare animals include Asian Small-clawed Otters (Aonyx cinerea) for JPY700,000, Indian Star Tortoises (Geochelone elegans) for JPY25,000 to JPY30,000, and Hercules stag beetles from Central or South America for JPY50,000 to JPY60,000. Now, these are the legally sold animals. There are many instances of rare, illegal sales taking place in Japan, but only interested collectors know of their availability. "Legally sold" doesn't mean legally procured. The problem with the Japanese law is that there is a "home free" aspect, allowing smugglers who having successfully gotten past Customs are then able to go ahead and sell their victims on the Internet. Even trying to get past Customs is just a slap on the wrist. The Tokyo Today site has an article several years ago about the fact that smugglers simply obfuscate the species description, and if the animal is not on the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) list of 900 endangered animals, then they are generally allowed in. Further, so long as smugglers don't specifically lie about having an animal, generally the most that happens to them if they get stopped is that the animal is confiscated and the smuggler gets off scot free. In 2008 there were only 341 prosecutions of animal smugglers using Narita Airport. The smuggling problem is endemic in Japan and the country often features high on the list of preferred sales destinations. Not just endangered species, almost anything that moves is smuggled. For example, hermit crabs and stag beetles. Three tons of hermit crabs are sold every year by pet shops to kids, and most are apparently smuggled in. Complicit in the trading of such vulnerable animals are a small group of underground dealers, who are either one of the 6,154 registered pet shops, or one of the approx. 6,500 "other" retailers who handle pets, or they are one of a vast and unknown number of internet advertisers. Although the law on animal protection and rules about the sale of animals have been updated a number of times, the problem is that animal protection is just not viewed by the judiciary or police as a pressing issue, and so the laws are vague and getting prosecutions is difficult. There are sickening cases of animal torture by sadists who have posted their acts on the internet, been caught, then let off with suspended fines. In such an environment, it's hard to imagine that the trade of rare animals is going to change any time soon. If you want to see some of the rare animals that can be purchased online in Japan, here is a list of websites that we found: * Animal planning, http://anipla.ocnk.net/ * Science factory, http://sf-japan.ocnk.net/ * Inner city zoo Noah, http://www.kentosh.co.jp/noah/ * Noah?s Ark, http://arkpet.ocnk.net/ * Bidders (Auction site), http://www.bidders.co.jp/categ/931 ************* Lastly, just a reminder to try out the excellent Tasmanian 9th Island Chardonnay at Metropolis' new online wine shop. A little oak, light but balanced acidity from the low temperature location, extremely drinkable, and just JPY2,500 a bottle. http://bit.ly/rnN318 ...The information janitors/ ***------------------------****-------------------------*** --------- BIOS - Bilingual IT Systems and Support --------- BiOS full-service IT solutions has a new service. Now the largest independently owned bilingual IT support company in Tokyo, BiOS offers some of the most competitive services available to multinationals whether large or small. Data Center staff and managed services, Help Desk, desktop, and network support. Server virtualization, cloud computing hosting and solutions, general software development. For more information on these and other SI and IT services, in English or Japanese: Phone: (03) 4588-2220, Email: solutions at biosjp.com Web: www.biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ NEWS - New tax hikes likely in 2012 - Tohoku tsunami paddies to convert to cotton - Softbank commits US$200m to fast-growing mobile ad company - SourceNext to sell what others give away for free - 47,756 hit the ton -- age-wise -> New tax hikes likely in 2012 The government Tax Commission has proposed taxing regular employees, companies, and the sales of alcohol and tobacco to partly fund the JPY13trn in reconstruction costs in Tohoku. There was also a suggestion of raising consumption tax, but PM Noda quickly killed that idea as his government wants to reserve additional consumption tax for future pensions and health care coverage. ***Ed: Either way you look at it, things look grim for Japan's consumer economy from next year. First the increase in income and corporate taxes, then within 3 years we will have dramatically higher consumption taxes.** (Source: TT commentary from wsj.com, Sep 9, 2011) http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20110916-704627.html -> Tohoku tsunami paddies to convert to cotton In a surprisingly fast move, a group of yarn/garment manufacturers and an agricultural company have banded together to create the Tohoku Cotton Project. Their objective is to help farmers rehabilitate their salt-laden rice paddies by planting cotton for some years, until irrigation and time lower salt levels to a point where rice can be planted again. Apparently cotton is able to tolerate salt levels twice that of rice. Around 58,000 acres of rice farmland has been affected and will take 3 years or longer to remediate. (Source: TT commentary from pbs.org, Sep 16, 2011) http://www.pbs.org/newshour/updates/world/july-dec11/cotton_09-16.html -> Softbank commits US$200m to fast-growing mobile ad company Bangalore-based InMobi, a mobile ad firm with access to 340m users in over 165 countries, has just received a massive commitment of US$100m from Softbank within this month, and another US$100m in April 2012. Apparently the investment gets Softbank a minority stake in the Indian firm, which Softbank's Masayoshi Son justifies by stating that "The partnership will help Softbank become the No. 1 Internet company in Asia". ***Ed: Will be interesting to see what special rights Son has bought himself with this expensive purchase.** (Source: TT commentary from reuters.com, Sep 16, 2011) http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/09/16/idUSL3E7KG0A920110916 -> SourceNext to sell what others give away for free Software retailer SourceNext is betting that it knows the Japanese consumer market better than it knows itself, by offering for sale ten new Android apps that users could otherwise simply pick up off the Android Market. The plan calls for the new Android apps to be distributed amongst some thousands of retailers, presumably as CDs in shelfed packages. The company appears to be looking for low-price impulse sales in stores where customers are buying an Android phone. ***Ed: It's a gutsy move, and given SourceNext's previous successes with low-cost PC software, who knows, they could compete with online distribution. Stranger things have happened!** (Source: TT commentary from marketwatch.com, Sep 16, 2011) http://bit.ly/nYxd4x -> 47,756 hit the ton -- age-wise The Ministry of Health has announced that a record 47,756 people in Japan are now aged 100 or older. 87% of the centenarians are women and the oldest is Chiyono Hasegawa, who is 114. In light of a pension-collection fraud last year, the Ministry has confirmed that all acknowledged oldsters were in fact alive when the numbers were collected. ***Ed: In 1999, Japan had just 11,346 centenarians, indicating a worrying trend that the population of those of extreme age will probably climb significantly for another 40 years -- when the dankai generation finally passes through that age bracket.** (Source: TT commentary from google.com and AP, Sep 13, 2011) http://bit.ly/qqTNE2 NOTE: Broken links Many online news sources remove their articles after just a few days of posting them, thus breaking our links -- we apologize for the inconvenience. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CANDIDATE ROUND UP/VACANCIES => BiOS, a Division of the LINC Media group, is actively marketing the following positions for customers setting up or expanding in Japan, as well as other employers of bilinguals. ** HIGHLIGHTED POSITION BiOS is urgently looking for a Helpdesk Engineer with experience in providing IT support to end users in the office of our client in the Bunkyo-ku area. The candidate will be responsible for providing level 1 and 2 support to approximately 300 end users who are predominately Japanese, as well as providing ad-hoc support to engineers who provide level 3 support. You will also be responsible for creating workflow manuals for IT team and end-users. Due to the technical nature and demanding work environment, this position is suitable for someone with solid experience as a helpdesk or desktop engineer supporting day-to-day office environment. In addition, since this role requires extensive communications with IT engineers and end-users in English, daily conversational-level communication skill in English and native-level communication skill in Japanese are required. Remuneration is JPY3.5m ? JPY4.5m depending on your experience and skill level. ** POSITIONS VACANT - Global Network Operator, global IT co., JPY3M ? JPY3.5M - Sales Assistant, BiOS, JPY3M ? JPY3.5M - Proj Mngment Officer, global insur. co, JPY10M ? JPY13M - IMAC Engineer, global ibank, JPY4M ? JPY5M - Vendor Manager, global insurance co, JPY7M ? JPY10M Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: tomohiro.kimura at biosjp.com ** BiOS Job Mail Every 2 weeks BiOS sends out a regular communication to its job seeking candidates, called BiOS Job Mail. Every edition carries a list of BiOS's current and most up-to-date vacancies, with each entry featuring a short job description and a direct link to the main entry on the BiOS home page. Regardless of whether you are unemployed and searching, thinking about a career change, or just curious to know if there is something out there that might suit you better, the BiOS Job Mail newsletter is an easy and convenient way for you to stay informed. If you would like to register for the BiOS Job Mail, or to find out more, please email kenji.sakota at biosjp.com. Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: tomohiro.kimura at biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ UPCOMING EVENTS/ANNOUNCEMENTS --------- Japan's Most Popular Leadership Training -------- Japan's most popular leadership training is called Action Learning, and was pioneered by Professor Reginald Revans of the UK in the 1940's. A published expert in the field of Action Learning is Dr. Michael Marquardt, Prof at George Washington University, DC. Dr. Marquardt will personally be in Japan, conducting a series of seminars for major Japanese corporations, and has agreed to do a single presentation for foreign managers as well. Hear how Action Learning can transform your work force. Title: "Impact of Action Learning: What difference are we making in the world? Speaker: Dr. Marquardt, President of World Institute for Action Learning Date: October 27, 2011, 10:00-13:00(13:30) Venue : Tokyo American Club (Tokyo, Japan) Fee : JPY 15,000 @(including lunch) Contact : info at ldcjp.com 03-6809-1144(English-Gledis Action Learning) 03-6680-2698(Japanese) http://www.ldcjp.com/seminar/20111027M.html ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CORRECTIONS/FEEDBACK In this section we run comments and corrections submitted by readers. We encourage you to spot our mistakes and amplify our points, by email, to editors at terrie.com. In TT629 we covered a short story on a historic court acquittal of a Jewish drug mule on the basis of expert testimony from a US witness, testifying as to the practices and mindset of the particular sect the man belonged to. A reader now educates us as to some of the background to this case and why it is so significant. We certainly appreciate the feedback. => Reader says: It is certainly a good thing you included a link to the original digitaljournal.com article because your summary of the article was poor. I found your choice of headline particularly bothersome considering the landmark nature of this case. The article points out that this was the first time the testimony of a US law enforcement official was accepted as evidence in a Japanese court yet you fail to mention that point entirely. You also seem unaware of the involvement of the local Jewish community on behalf of the three young men. *** We respond: Thanks for reading. Within the limited scope of the news extracts/comments, we used the words, "historic", "first", "expert testimony from US witness"... so we don't think anything of importance was missed here. The fact that the Jewish community was deeply involved is a common element in other similar cases, so while it was important, it wasn't unique (although as you say, it may have been pivotal in his acquittal). When UK citizen Nick Baker was incarcerated on similar charges, the UK community rallied and put tremendous pressure on the Japanese. We believe the US expert testimony to be the real point of note here and I have mentioned this, as brief as it is. The reason we put links in the newsletter is so that people can read in more detail what we have found and highlighted. The intent of the news pieces is a short mention of noteworthy news, nothing more and nothing less than that. => Reader replies: The situation for these young men is different in so much as their cultural context is so different due to their very strict religious lifestyle which is not easily accommodated in a Japanese prison. Perhaps more importantly, in this case it was actually the local Chabad rabbi, Mendi Sudakevich, whom they thought they were supposed to be delivering something to, who provided support to them and to various members of the overseas community who traveled to Japan to support them with their case. Chabad is rather unique amongst the chassidic sects in that they send rabbis out to all corners of the globe to set up local "Chabad Houses" to provide support and community for resident or visiting Jews. Since 2000, Chabad of Japan has been providing a place for regular prayer minyans, holiday services, kosher meals (impossible to get a kosher meal retail here) as well as the full range of lifecycle events according to the Orthodox Jewish tradition. Although Chabad is an Orthodox sect, all Jews are made to feel welcome at a Chabad House. Part of all this also includes visiting and supporting Jews who find themselves on the wrong side of the law in Japan. As a side note, Chabad will be hosting a festive meal and services for Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish new year, at the end of September and full services for Yom Kippur and Sukkot in October. Their website is http://chabad.jp. *********************************************************** END SUBSCRIBERS: 8,835 members as of Sep 18, 2011 (We purge our list regularly.) +++ ABOUT US STAFF Written by: Terrie Lloyd (terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com) HELP: E-mail Terrie-request at mailman.japaninc.com with the word 'help' in the subject or body (don't include the quotes), and you will get back a message with instructions. FEEDBACK Send letters (Feedback, Inquiries & Information) to the editor to terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com. ADVERTISING INFORMATION For more information on advertising in this newsletter, Contact ads at japaninc.com. SUBSCRIBE Get Terrie's Take by giving your name and email address at http://www.japaninc.com/newsletters/free_sign_up, or go straight to Mailman at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ Copyright 2011 Japan Inc. Communications Inc. ----------------- Japan Inc opens up Japan ---------------- J at pan Inc is Japan's only independently published English- language business website. Authoritatively chronicling online the business trends in Japan, each posting brings you in-depth analysis of business, people and technology in the world's second largest economy. Visit www.japaninc.com for the best business insight on Japan available. ----------------------------------------------------------- -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From terrie at mailman.japaninc.com Mon Sep 26 00:24:51 2011 From: terrie at mailman.japaninc.com (Terrie's Take) Date: Mon, 26 Sep 2011 00:24:51 +0900 Subject: Terrie's Take 631 -- Is Venture Capital Back in Vogue? ebiz news from Japan. Message-ID: * * * * * * * * * T E R R I E 'S T A K E * * * * * * * A weekly roundup of news & information from Terrie Lloyd. (http://www.terrie.com) General Edition Sunday, September 25, 2011, Issue No. 631 +++ INDEX - What's New -- Is Venture Capital Back in Vogue? - News -- Diabetes doubles Alzheimer's rate - Candidate Roundup/Vacancies - Upcoming Events - Corrections/Feedback - News Credits SUBSCRIBE to, UNSUBSCRIBE from Terrie's Take at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take, or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ -------------- PBXL SUPPORTS SMALL BUSINESS --------------- MOVING TO A NEW OFFICE? DON'T BUY A PBX! At PBXL, we understand how expensive and time consuming it is to move into a new office, and we want to make sure that new businesses start off right. PBXL provides Cisco based scalable, high quality telephony and communications solutions. - Data center hosted, fully managed telephony solutions - Flexible to your business needs from 2 to 200 people - Avoid costly upfront purchases - Add phones as you grow Check out our website today at http://pbxl.jp e-mail us at info at pbxl.jp or call us at 03-4550-2557 ------------- PBXL is BUSINESS COMMUNICATIONS ------------- +++ WHAT'S NEW At the end of August, the Nikkei carried an article stating that Venture Capital (VC) in Japan was starting to pick up again, citing the fact that the Japan Venture Capital Association (JVCA) was reporting member companies investing almost as much in Q1 this year as they did in Q3 of 2008, just before the Lehman Shock. According to the JVCA, member VCs invested JPY9.2bn into start-ups, compared to JPY9.4bn in the 2008 Q3 period. Actually, JPY9.2bn may be more than the last 3 years worth of fiscal quarters, but it's still small potatoes compared to other countries. In Q1 last year (2010), China saw 45 significant VC investments of US$579m, up 35% over 2009, and India had 21 significant deals worth US259m over the same period. We expect that both countries will be up at least 30% or more on these numbers this year. Furthermore, recent news items suggest that much of Japanese VC firms' investments are not necessarily even going into Japanese companies, but rather appear to be overall figures. So we'd like more clarification on the JVCA numbers before reporting that all is getting better. Anecdotally, we're not seeing increased VC money on the streets as yet, start-ups are finding it just as difficult as it ever was to get funding. But we are seeing some interesting trends emerge -- more on these a little later in this article. Whether venture capital is coming back or not is is a critical question for Japan's non-manufacturing sector. Because without some form of organized funding, very few Japanese services start-ups (especially software and Internet companies) can ever hope to emulate the success of their overseas counterparts, who can spend much larger sums to ensure top quality coding and execution of their business plans. The thinking here in Japan, until recently at least, has been that starving start-ups of funds makes them fiscally more responsible and prudent. But it is also a good way to destroy their first-to-market advantage, as they struggle to take on paying work to finance their future businesses. As justification for believing the VC investment environment is improving, the Nikkei August article goes on to say that Globis Capital Partners, a leading VC, invested more than JPY1bn into start-ups from April through mid-August. Then there was SBI, which put JPY500m into a single company, Smart Navi, an iPad-related software company, also in August. [Continued below...] -- NAGAMINE & MISHIMA - Securing Your Success in Japan --- Starting a new company in Japan? Looking to streamline your current operations? The team of bilingual experts at Nagamine & Mishima is able to provide high quality accounting, payroll and tax services that both exceed expectations and fit your budget. Our services help customers improve their operations and bottom line results. To find out more about our services and how we can help your business in Japan succeed, please visit our website www.nagamine-mishima.com or reach us directly by telephone at 03-3581-1975 or by email at info at nagamine-mishima.com. ---------- YOUR BOTTOM LINE IS OUR TOP PRIORITY------------ [...Article continues] Lastly they quote Mobile Internet Capital, which set up a new investment fund in July, and which by August had already raised JPY5.2bn from mostly institutional investors who are putting small amounts of their vast capital into higher risk investments. One of these institutions, responsible for half of MIC's JPY5bn, was the Organization for Small & Medium Enterprises and Regional Innovation organization (SME Support, Japan), a government-related fund. SME Support Japan has already invested or co-invested JPY9bn this fiscal year and is expecting to increase that amount to JPY20bn by year end. Actually, JPY20bn for venture investments is a lot of cash within the Japan VC sector. Indeed, it is almost as much as all the private VC funds are investing together as a whole. Therefore, if this SME Support Japan fund continues to co-invest along the same lines as it did with MIC, then we can expect an investment pattern that may start looking like the government-backed venture investment funds of other countries, such as New Zealand's Venture Investment Fund (VIF). Last time we checked, NZ's VIF had put well over US$100m into dollar-matching arrangements with five approved private VCs throughout the country, and as a result has enabled scores of innovative export-earning companies to be established. SME Support Japan seems to be taking the view with MIC that it is better to be a fund-of-funds and to help out those VCs with the knowledge and the connections that SME Support Japan itself would be hard pressed to replicate. So if it can continue the process, then it will surely reinvigorate the sector and make it attractive to independent investors again. In the past MIC has invested JPY100m-JPY500m per target company, so we're expecting them to continue that level of activity. If the government doesn't get involved in venture funding, then we see local VC funding diving again. The reason is simple: there are very few IPOs done in Japan these days, especially compared to other Asian countries, and thus the possibility of earning decent returns for the risks taken will drive investors elsewhere. This would explain why so many Japanese VCs are actively looking abroad for opportunity, having largely accepted that the Japan market is moribund. Softbank's stunning announcement last week of a US$200m investment into Indian mobile advertising firm InMobi, is but the tip of the iceberg in this regard. With or without the government, there is another interesting trend emerging, however. There have been a number of announcements recently about VCs putting "micro amounts" of JPY5m or a little more into numerous start ups in a scatter-gun approach. The rationale for such small investments is that they are offering more important "value" to investees than just cash: instead they're taking a holistic approach and offering incubator-style rent, personnel, help with development and sales, and management consulting training. Actually, this is somewhat similar to the very successful US-based Y Combinator incubator. The company has processed over 300 start-ups since it began in 2005, and last year it "graduated" another 63 firms. Y Combinator puts in as little capital as US$10k-US$50k per company, and gets 2%-10% of the stock in return. The reason for this is that start-ups don't really go to Y Combinator for cash, they go for the networking, the credibility and because they know that the relationship is temporary. It's working, because just a couple of months ago a new and completely separate US fund has offered a blanket US$150k in debt funding to ALL the graduating companies from Y Combinator -- testimony to the quality of the firms there. This groupist approach, coupled with mentoring and monitoring of the incubatees is successful in Silicon Valley, but it could be ideal for Japan as well -- where start-up management teams are typically very inexperienced and short of knowledge on how to run a business. Actually, we know of several VC funds/incubators already using this approach here in Japan, including one fund out in Ikebukuro which has around 40 companies either incubating or in the process of moving out. The attraction for start-ups to this Ikebukuro fund isn't the cash, it's the collegiate atmosphere and the ability for the fund managers to accept mistakes and learning on the job. Indeed, it's almost like going back to a university setting. The idea of scatter-gun investments, in small amounts, and with the ability to mentor and influence these firms to success, is highly attractive to existing VC players here in Japan. One company that has already announced this strategy is Movida Japan, headed by Taizo Son, Softbank Masayoshi Son's younger brother. Movida plans to put just JPY5m into as many as 1,000 early-stage companies and will provide consulting and other services to help those new firms grow. Movida will soon have competition from another similar fund to be co-invested in by NTT Investment Partners, Gree, NEC Biglobe Capital, and MUFJ Capital. This new fund, which doesn't appear to have a name as yet, is expecting to raise around JPY2bn and wants to put in about JPY10m per start-up -- giving it the potential of aggregating as many as 200 start-ups. So maybe the Nikkei is right, and that with the advent of SME Support Japan investments as well as the move to incubator-style investments, the venture capital scene in Japan could indeed be on the way to improvement. ************* Want good Australian wine at a low price and quickly? You can't do better than the new Wine Buzz online store at Metropolis. All orders and support are available in English. http://bit.ly/rnN318 ...The information janitors/ ***------------------------****-------------------------*** --------- BIOS - Bilingual IT Systems and Support --------- BiOS full-service IT solutions has a new service. Now the largest independently owned bilingual IT support company in Tokyo, BiOS offers some of the most competitive services available to multinationals whether large or small. Data Center staff and managed services, Help Desk, desktop, and network support. Server virtualization, cloud computing hosting and solutions, general software development. For more information on these and other SI and IT services, in English or Japanese: Phone: (03) 4588-2220, Email: solutions at biosjp.com Web: www.biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ NEWS - Women in their 60's biggest spending travelers - iRobot gets competition - Taxes to go up after election year? - Rakuten makes another major acquisition - Diabetes significantly increases Alzheimer's later -> Women in their 60's biggest spending travelers The Japan Tourism Agency has issued the results of a survey that says that 4.1m women in their 60's traveled domestically in Q1 (Jan-Mar) this year, and spent JPY160bn in doing so. 3.58m men in the same age bracket also traveled regularly, spending around JPY120bn. In terms of actual one-night spend, men in their 30's spent the most, racking up bills of around JPY58,000. ***Ed: At that amount, one would have to imagine that the single men were either paying for their girlfriends as well, or they are all driving Ferraris...** (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Sep 22, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110923D2309A20.htm -> iRobot gets competition Working couples and retired folks have one thing in common: they have little time or interest in doing housework. As a result, the Roomba robot vacuum cleaner made by US-based iRobot is doing strong business in Japan, gaining about 2% of the vacuum cleaner market by selling 150,000 units a year. This has attracted the attention of Japanese competitors, who are about to launch similar machines. Toshiba and Bandai's CCP are two such firms. Apparently both companies will compete on the fact that the Roomba's sensors are somewhat primitive and the machine needs to run around an apartment a number of times, bumping into walls and furniture in order to change direction and clean a new area. Both Toshiba and CCP will launch units with smarter sensors and processing capability. (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Sep 22, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110923D22HH417.htm -> Taxes to go up after election year? Although the government tax panel normally gets to set policy, the DPJ's own tax panel has intervened and made sure that any earthquake recovery taxes won't hit voters until 2013, not this year or next. Apparently the details will be confirmed next week. Currently it looks like income tax for working stiffs will go up, as will inheritance taxes (non-working stiffs?), for at least 10 years. ***Ed: You really have to wonder what this is all going to do to the economy. Coupled with at least a 10% hike in consumer tax at roughly the same time, we the tax payers will have some tough times ahead.** (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Sep 23, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20110922D2209F02.htm -> Rakuten makes another major acquisition Building out its presence across the globe, Rakuten has just bought out one of the UK's largest web retailers, Play.com, for just JPY3bn (approx.). The UK is Europe's largest e-commerce market, and this purchase brings Rakuten closer to becoming the Number Two e-commerce player in the region, after Amazon.com. ***Ed: Why was Rakuten able to buy Play.com for just 1/10th of their other Europe acquisitions, even though it reportedly had sales last year of around 500m pounds? According to the Guardian newspaper, the company is based in Jersey and sales of DVDs have been made legally without customers having to pay 20% VAT. That tax loophole is going to be eliminated in March 2012 by the UK government, so so Play.com is expected to take a big hit as a result.** (Source: TT commentary from indiatimes.com, Sep 21, 2011) http://bit.ly/qQ0czf -> Diabetes significantly increases Alzheimer's later A new study conducted by researchers at Kyushu University (Kyudai) in Fukuoka proves what doctors have suspected for a while, that people with diabetes are at high risk of contracting Alzheimer's disease later in life. A 1,000-person study of over-60's was able to link diabetes sufferers earlier in life with those getting Alzheimers later. The chances of Alzheimer's doubled within 15 years. Indeed, the diabetics were also 1.75 times more likely to develop any form of dementia. (Source: TT commentary from foxnews.com, Sep 20, 2011) http://fxn.ws/n83RiM NOTE: Broken links Many online news sources remove their articles after just a few days of posting them, thus breaking our links -- we apologize for the inconvenience. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CANDIDATE ROUND UP/VACANCIES => BiOS, a Division of the LINC Media group, is actively marketing the following positions for customers setting up or expanding in Japan, as well as other employers of bilinguals. ** HIGHLIGHTED POSITION BiOS is urgently looking for a Field Support Engineer with experience providing maintenance/installation support of network/unified communications system services to international clients in the Minato-ku area. The candidate will not only be responsible for providing technical services but also analyzing customer feedback and applying it to new services scopes in order to improve the quality of the services, as well as providing occasional support to internal engineers who are providing services outside Tokyo area. You will also be responsible for escalating technical issues to appropriate departments when required.. Due to the technical nature and demanding work environment, this position is suitable for someone with solid experience as an engineer in network or unified communications-related systems. In addition, since this role requires direct contact with both Japanese and international clients, business-level communication skills in English and fluency in Japanese will be required. Remuneration is JPY7m ? JPY8.5m depending on your experience and skill level. ** POSITIONS VACANT - Helpdesk Engr, global medical equipment co, JPY4M ? JPY5M - Service Delivery Manager, global IT co., JPY8M ? JPY9.5M - Field Engineer, BiOS, JPY4M ? JPY5M - Proj. Mngment Officer, global insur. co, JPY 9M ? JPY13M - Sales Team Account Manager, BiOS, JPY4M ? JPY4.5M Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: tomohiro.kimura at biosjp.com ** BiOS Job Mail Every 2 weeks BiOS sends out a regular communication to its job seeking candidates, called BiOS Job Mail. Every edition carries a list of BiOS's current and most up-to-date vacancies, with each entry featuring a short job description and a direct link to the main entry on the BiOS home page. Regardless of whether you are unemployed and searching, thinking about a career change, or just curious to know if there is something out there that might suit you better, the BiOS Job Mail newsletter is an easy and convenient way for you to stay informed. If you would like to register for the BiOS Job Mail, or to find out more, please email kenji.sakota at biosjp.com. Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: tomohiro.kimura at biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ UPCOMING EVENTS/ANNOUNCEMENTS --------- Japan's Most Popular Leadership Training -------- Japan's most popular leadership training is called Action Learning, and was pioneered by Professor Reginald Revans of the UK in the 1940's. A published expert in the field of Action Learning is Dr. Michael Marquardt, Prof at George Washington University, DC. Dr. Marquardt will personally be in Japan, conducting a series of seminars for major Japanese corporations, and has agreed to do a single presentation for foreign managers as well. Hear how Action Learning can transform your work force. Title: "Impact of Action Learning: What difference are we making in the world? Speaker: Dr. Marquardt, President of World Institute for Action Learning Date: October 27, 2011, 10:00-13:00(13:30) Venue : Tokyo American Club (Tokyo, Japan) Fee : JPY15,000 @(including lunch) Contact : info at ldcjp.com 03-6809-1144 (English-Gledis Action Learning) 03-6680-2698(Japanese) http://www.ldcjp.com/ http://www.ldcjp.com/seminar/20111027M.html ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CORRECTIONS/FEEDBACK In this section we run comments and corrections submitted by readers. We encourage you to spot our mistakes and amplify our points, by email, to editors at terrie.com. *** No comments this week. *********************************************************** END SUBSCRIBERS: 8,838 members as of Sep 25, 2011 (We purge our list regularly.) +++ ABOUT US STAFF Written by: Terrie Lloyd (terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com) HELP: E-mail Terrie-request at mailman.japaninc.com with the word 'help' in the subject or body (don't include the quotes), and you will get back a message with instructions. FEEDBACK Send letters (Feedback, Inquiries & Information) to the editor to terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com. ADVERTISING INFORMATION For more information on advertising in this newsletter, Contact ads at japaninc.com. SUBSCRIBE Get Terrie's Take by giving your name and email address at http://www.japaninc.com/newsletters/free_sign_up, or go straight to Mailman at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ Copyright 2011 Japan Inc. Communications Inc. ----------------- Japan Inc opens up Japan ---------------- J at pan Inc is Japan's only independently published English- language business website. Authoritatively chronicling online the business trends in Japan, each posting brings you in-depth analysis of business, people and technology in the world's second largest economy. Visit www.japaninc.com for the best business insight on Japan available. ----------------------------------------------------------- -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From terrie at mailman.japaninc.com Mon Oct 3 09:21:59 2011 From: terrie at mailman.japaninc.com (Terrie's Take) Date: Mon, 3 Oct 2011 09:21:59 +0900 Subject: Terrie's Take 632 -- BPO in Dalian, e-biz news from Japan Message-ID: * * * * * * * * * T E R R I E 'S T A K E * * * * * * * A weekly roundup of news & information from Terrie Lloyd. (http://www.terrie.com) General Edition Sunday, October 02, 2011, Issue No. 632 +++ INDEX - What's New -- BPO in Dalian - News -- Karoshi case ruling sustained by Supreme Court - Candidate Roundup/Vacancies - Upcoming Events - Corrections/Feedback - News Credits SUBSCRIBE to, UNSUBSCRIBE from Terrie's Take at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take, or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ -------------- PBXL SUPPORTS SMALL BUSINESS --------------- MOVING TO A NEW OFFICE? DON'T BUY A PBX! At PBXL, we understand how expensive and time consuming it is to move into a new office, and we want to make sure that new businesses start off right. PBXL provides Cisco based scalable, high quality telephony and communications solutions. - Data center hosted, fully managed telephony solutions - Flexible to your business needs from 2 to 200 people - Avoid costly upfront purchases - Add phones as you grow Check out our website today at http://pbxl.jp e-mail us at info at pbxl.jp or call us at 03-4550-2557 ------------- PBXL is BUSINESS COMMUNICATIONS ------------- +++ WHAT'S NEW If there's one thing we can predict about Japanese companies, it's that once a trend gains momentum, everyone wants to jump on the bandwagon and thus the trend becomes a rush. High domestic costs and a dwindling market are the drivers for Japanese companies to move abroad, and right now there is no bigger rush than the one into China. Some are going for outsourced price cutting, thanks to factory wages of JPY10,000/month or less, and others are going because they see China as an undemanding first overseas market where they can make mistakes and morph their business as opportunities come and go. Either way, China is becoming a beachhead for newbies, who want to take a stab at the world at large but who need to get their feet wet first. This isn't to say that the China market is an easy one. On the contrary, the lack of law and the willingness of local partners to take advantage of their naive new Japanese partners, means that there is plenty of scope to lose your shirt. And certainly we are hearing many stories of Japanese firms getting robbed blind as they learn the ropes. But they are learning, and so far there have been two major lessons. Firstly, if you want to operate in an emerging market, China just being one of the largest and closest, you need to own end-to-end control of your business -- or be using someone who does. That means your own infrastructure, raw materials, trusted management, warehousing, and shipping. Thus everything that happens is supervised and quality can be reasonably assured. Luckily this is exactly the way Japanese major firms have developed back home, so layering in lots of vertical capability comes as second nature. [Continued below...] -- NAGAMINE & MISHIMA - Securing Your Success in Japan --- Starting a new company in Japan? Looking to streamline your current operations? The team of bilingual experts at Nagamine & Mishima is able to provide high quality accounting, payroll and tax services that both exceed expectations and fit your budget. Our services help customers improve their operations and bottom line results. To find out more about our services and how we can help your business in Japan succeed, please visit our website www.nagamine-mishima.com or reach us directly by telephone at 03-3581-1975 or by email at info at nagamine-mishima.com. ---------- YOUR BOTTOM LINE IS OUR TOP PRIORITY------------ [...Article continues] Secondly, you need to be big. Big enough that you can take the initial hits of learning who to trust and how the political system works. For those companies which are not big enough, there is outsourcing, a business that is expanding by leaps and bounds. The Nikkei had a good article last week about Japanese outsourcing firms in the Northern Chinese city of Dalian, a location they originally picked because of the relatively high concentration of Japanese speakers there. When one thinks of outsourcing the most logical activity to try first in a place with Japanese speakers is call centers, and sure enough, many major western and Japanese firms set up in Dalian in the early 2000's. But what they found is that there is a dire shortage of Japanese speakers willing to work at rates much below those available in Japan, and thus the call center efforts floundered. While spoken Japanese language outsourcing has been a bust, written language such as processing business documentation has been a huge success. Sure, the Chinese and Japanese character sets have some differences, but at most an educated Chinese white collar worker needs just 6 months to master those differences and become proficient within a given vocabulary set. Thus the Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) sector has become a leading source of employment growth for Dalian and for the Japanese firms operating there. The growth numbers are pretty impressive. Including some US and European firms, but most of which are servicing the Japan market, over 900 foreign companies have set up operations in Dalian, employing 100,000+ people. About half of these appear to be in the BPO sector. The City of Dalian knows a good thing when it sees it, and is planning to expand not just BPO but also software outsourcing in general, and has set a target of 200,000 employees. There are two types of foreign BPO companies operating in Dalian: divisions of large multinationals who started off doing company-internal processing and some of which are now offering the same services to customers, and third-party services firms who are doing outsourcing for smaller companies back home. IBM would qualify as one of the first type and the company has about 2,000 BPO employees in Dalian. Now that it has figured out the systems and processes, IBM has just opened a new office that can house up to 10,000 employees. We don't know how many of these employees are doing Japanese BPO, but given that India and the Philippines can handle English more competitively, our guess is that the proportion is quite large. Also in the first category would be Nomura Securities, which is having to compete with the likes of Citigroup -- a company already highly committed to off-shoring its BPO to China. Nomura opened a data entry BPO office in Dalian in April, employing just 40 people initially to key in customer accounts and cost-tracking data. However, plans are to grow this number to around 250 people by the end of this fiscal year (2011) and 500 people in 2012. Interestingly, Nomura is publicizing the BPO center as a back-up center in case the firm's main operations in Japan are crippled by a natural disaster. The reality is that it is so much cheaper to get keyboarding done in China, but if operational safety can be sold as an added advantage even as people are losing jobs in its two Kanagawa centers, then we guess that's the name of the PR game. In the second category, as we reported in TT-580 last year, are third-party BPO firms such as InfoDeliver, Transcosmos, and PasonaTech. These companies are between them employing more than 2,500 people in and around Dalian, and have plans for significant growth. Now that China-based BPO for data entry and accounting is mainstream, SMEs back here in Japan are realizing that they can cut manpower costs and still get a reasonable job done using such off-shoring vendors. This point is really driven home when you can travel on the Tokyo subway system and see ads for off-shoring accounting services and business books about outsourcing to China. Actually, Gartner said last year that the Japanese BPO market in 2009 was worth around JPY1.28trn, and they were predicting a rise to around JPY1.45trn by 2014. Our guess is that with the herd mentality that comes with a realization of huge cost savings, especially now that income tax and social insurance premiums for employees here in Japan are going to jump more than 10% in the next two years, the real number for BPO will be more like JPY2trn or more. This of course doesn't bode well for Japanese white collar workers, who will correspondingly be losing their jobs, but it is inevitable when the Japanese government makes it so unattractive to hire staff and China is so much cheaper. **************** Special technology course. If you a Unix or web engineer interested in search, you won't want to miss a special one-off training opportunity being conducted by Basis Technology about Apache Solr. Basis Technology is a software and linguistics specialty firm based in Boston, USA and are trying out this course as a supplement to their mainstream Japanese-language courses. You can find more about the course in the Events/Announcements section below. As we mentioned, this is only being run once in English, and probably won't be repeated again for some time. ...The information janitors/ ***------------------------****-------------------------*** --------- BIOS - Bilingual IT Systems and Support --------- BiOS full-service IT solutions has a new service. Now the largest independently owned bilingual IT support company in Tokyo, BiOS offers some of the most competitive services available to multinationals whether large or small. Data Center staff and managed services, Help Desk, desktop, and network support. Server virtualization, cloud computing hosting and solutions, general software development. For more information on these and other SI and IT services, in English or Japanese: Phone: (03) 4588-2220, Email: solutions at biosjp.com Web: www.biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ NEWS - Karoshi case ruling sustained by Supreme Court - There's money in shoes - Foreign tourists into Japan still well down - Pregnancy simulation device for men - Mrs Watanabes dump Brazilian Real -> Karoshi case ruling sustained by Supreme Court Camera-maker Nikon must have been plenty worried about other employee law suits to have fought the case of Yuji Uendan, who committed suicide due to overwork, for over 11 long years. Well, Nikon got the answer it obviously was hoping to avoid when the Supreme Court upheld a 2009 Tokyo High Court finding that Uendan killed himself due to overwork. Nikon has been ordered, along with a haken company based in Nagoya, to pay Uendan's mom JPY70m in compensation. (Source: TT commentary from japantimes.co.jp, Oct 2, 2011) http://search.japantimes.co.jp/mail/nn20111002a5.html -> There's money in shoes We suppose it's logical. In times of hardship, people walk more and so they use a lot more shoes. Certainly that would be one explanation for the 13% sales jump enjoyed by ABC-Mart, which is blowing past competitors in terms of growth. The company says that its operating profit for the first half (Mar-Aug) will increase 8% to JPY14bn. ABC-Mart is also doing well abroad and has seen sales leap 40% from overseas stores. Apparently most of the growth is coming from high-end brand name sneakers and ABC-Mart's very compelling product displays. (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Sep 30, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/TNKS/Nni20110929D2909A24.htm?NS-query=accounting -> Foreign tourists into Japan still well down The high yen and the nuclear power problems at Fukushima continue to dog the inbound tourism industry, with JNTO figures showing tourism numbers down 31.9% over last year, and tourists from South Korea and China down a massive 40%. It seems that Taiwanese are a bit braver and their numbers are down just 12%. Overall, the sector most fully recovered is business travelers, who are almost back to normal numbers. In terms of spending during the April-June period, Chinese tourists spent around JPY29.9bn, South Koreans JPY16.8bn, and Taiwanese JPY16.7bn. (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Sep 26, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/20110926/TNW/Nni20110926FE9TOP01.htm -> Pregnancy simulation device for for men Well, we can't see them selling many of these, however, researchers at the Kanagawa of Institute of Technology have their hearts... err stomachs, in the right place. They have invented a pregnancy simulator device that consists of a diaphragm, water pumps, vibrator, and a bunch of valves and tubes feeding into 48 balloons. The idea is that a male subject -- supposedly the partner of an expectant women, wears the device and feels over a period of hours the weight, baby movements, and heartbeat of a growing fetus. According to the lead scientist he made the device so that men could experience what their partners might, especially when traveling in the train... ***Ed: Make of this what you will. We suppose it's a better use of state funding than weapons research.** (Source: TT commentary from abcnews.go.com, Sep 30, 2011) http://abcn.ws/nDS9u6 -> Mrs Watanabes dump Brazilian Real Just how big the Japanese FX market has grown becomes obvious when one considers the Brazilian Real. Apparently Japanese retail foreign exchange investors have fled the Real since it took a big drop at the end of August after the Brazilian Central Bank lowered interest rates to try to fight inflation in that country. Retail investors have pulled out about JPY52.7bn of currency from Real holdings in just the last month, equivalent to about 20% of all the nation's foreign reserves. On top of that, professional investors from Japan pulled out about another JPY50bn. (Source: TT commentary from businessweek.com, Sep 30, 2011) http://buswk.co/rlJ7xp NOTE: Broken links Many online news sources remove their articles after just a few days of posting them, thus breaking our links -- we apologize for the inconvenience. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CANDIDATE ROUND UP/VACANCIES => BiOS, a Division of the LINC Media group, is actively marketing the following positions for customers setting up or expanding in Japan, as well as other employers of bilinguals. ** HIGHLIGHTED POSITION BiOS is urgently looking for a Service Delivery Manager with experience managing a company?s network and unified communications system services to meet client expectations, at our client?s office in the Minato-ku area. The candidate will be responsible for acting as the single point of contact for the client regarding services the company provides to their multiple international clients in Japan, as well as creating, proposing, and managing budget plans to clients by working closely with internal staff from sales and engineer teams. You will also be responsible for analyzing business requirements and inquiries regarding incidents received from the clients, to improve quality of the services.. Due to the technical nature and demanding work environment, this position is suitable for someone with solid experience of more than five years as a project leader, team leader, or supervisor of a network or unified communications services team. In addition, since this role requires frequent coordination with internal staff and clients, business-level communication skills in English and fluent-level communication skills in Japanese will be required. Remuneration is JPY8.5m ? JPY10m depending on your experience and skill level. ** POSITIONS VACANT - Tech Support Engr, global medical equip, JPY4M ? JPY5.5M - MS Dynamics Specialist, BiOS, JPY6M ? JPY8M - Sales Staff, global IT co, JPY 8M ? JPY10M - Field Engineer, BiOS, JPY4M ? JPY4.5M - Data Center Engineer, global It co, JPY3M ? JPY4M Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: tomohiro.kimura at biosjp.com ** BiOS Job Mail Every 2 weeks BiOS sends out a regular communication to its job seeking candidates, called BiOS Job Mail. Every edition carries a list of BiOS's current and most up-to-date vacancies, with each entry featuring a short job description and a direct link to the main entry on the BiOS home page. Regardless of whether you are unemployed and searching, thinking about a career change, or just curious to know if there is something out there that might suit you better, the BiOS Job Mail newsletter is an easy and convenient way for you to stay informed. If you would like to register for the BiOS Job Mail, or to find out more, please email kenji.sakota at biosjp.com. Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: tomohiro.kimura at biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ UPCOMING EVENTS/ANNOUNCEMENTS --------- Official Apache Solr training in English -------- For engineers in Japan! (October 25-27, 2011) Train in Tokyo to become an expert Apache Solr engineer with a course developed by the engineers who helped write the Apache Lucene/Solr code. This intensive, three-day, hands-on, classroom course will be delivered in English by certified instructors on Oct. 25-27, 2011 in Tokyo. "Developing Search Applications With Solr" covers designing Solr applications, indexing, findability, Japanese search support, faceted navigation, admin configurations, etc. Training Information: http://www.lucidimagination.jp/training-en/ Registration: http://fs11.formsite.com/basistech/solr-training-app-form/index.html? ----------------------------------------------------------- --------- Japan's Most Popular Leadership Training -------- Japan's most popular leadership training is called Action Learning, and was pioneered by Professor Reginald Revans of the UK in the 1940's. A published expert in the field of Action Learning is Dr. Michael Marquardt, Prof at George Washington University, DC. Dr. Marquardt will personally be in Japan, conducting a series of seminars for major Japanese corporations, and has agreed to do a single presentation for foreign managers as well. Hear how Action Learning can transform your work force. Title: "Impact of Action Learning: What difference are we making in the world? Speaker: Dr. Marquardt, President of World Institute for Action Learning Date: October 27, 2011, 10:00-13:00(13:30) Venue : Tokyo American Club (Tokyo, Japan) Fee : JPY 15,000 @(including lunch) Contact : info at ldcjp.com 03-6809-1144(English-Gledis Action Learning) 03-6680-2698(Japanese) http://www.ldcjp.com/ http://www.ldcjp.com/seminar/20111027M.html ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CORRECTIONS/FEEDBACK In this section we run comments and corrections submitted by readers. We encourage you to spot our mistakes and amplify our points, by email, to editors at terrie.com. *** No comments this week. *********************************************************** END SUBSCRIBERS: 8,401 members as of Oct 02, 2011 (We purge our list regularly.) +++ ABOUT US STAFF Written by: Terrie Lloyd (terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com) HELP: E-mail Terrie-request at mailman.japaninc.com with the word 'help' in the subject or body (don't include the quotes), and you will get back a message with instructions. FEEDBACK Send letters (Feedback, Inquiries & Information) to the editor to terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com. ADVERTISING INFORMATION For more information on advertising in this newsletter, Contact ads at japaninc.com. SUBSCRIBE Get Terrie's Take by giving your name and email address at http://www.japaninc.com/newsletters/free_sign_up, or go straight to Mailman at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ Copyright 2011 Japan Inc. Communications Inc. ----------------- Japan Inc opens up Japan ---------------- J at pan Inc is Japan's only independently published English- language business website. Authoritatively chronicling online the business trends in Japan, each posting brings you in-depth analysis of business, people and technology in the world's second largest economy. Visit www.japaninc.com for the best business insight on Japan available. ----------------------------------------------------------- -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From terrie at mailman.japaninc.com Mon Oct 10 10:32:15 2011 From: terrie at mailman.japaninc.com (Terrie's Take) Date: Mon, 10 Oct 2011 10:32:15 +0900 Subject: Terrie's Take 633 -- Are We in an M&A Bubble? ebiz news from Japan Message-ID: * * * * * * * * * T E R R I E 'S T A K E * * * * * * * A weekly roundup of news & information from Terrie Lloyd. (http://www.terrie.com) General Edition Sunday, October 09, 2011, Issue No. 633 +++ INDEX - What's New -- Are We in an M&A Bubble? - News -- Tsunami destruction tour - Candidate Roundup/Vacancies - Upcoming Events - Corrections/Feedback - News Credits SUBSCRIBE to, UNSUBSCRIBE from Terrie's Take at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take, or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ -------------- PBXL SUPPORTS SMALL BUSINESS --------------- MOVING TO A NEW OFFICE? DON'T BUY A PBX! At PBXL, we understand how expensive and time consuming it is to move into a new office, and we want to make sure that new businesses start off right. PBXL provides Cisco based scalable, high quality telephony and communications solutions. - Data center hosted, fully managed telephony solutions - Flexible to your business needs from 2 to 200 people - Avoid costly upfront purchases - Add phones as you grow Check out our website today at http://pbxl.jp e-mail us at info at pbxl.jp or call us at 03-4550-2557 ------------- PBXL is BUSINESS COMMUNICATIONS ------------- +++ WHAT'S NEW Over the last 9 months the amount of foreign M&As being done by Japanese companies has been remarkable, and as we mentioned some weeks ago in TT-627, the amount of deals involved is already 70% above where it was this time last year, at US45bn for the first 7 months. Since most of us are far removed from the concept of foreign M&As, unless we happen to be working for an acquisitive Japanese firm that requires bilingual skills in order to get promotion, these M&As make for interesting breakfast table reading but are otherwise ho-hum stuff. After all, the yen is at a record high, so why is it such a surprise? Effectively all of these purchases are coming at a 25% discount compared to where the Yen-Dollar rate will be 12-24 months from now, so it's no wonder companies are on the prowl. Right? But what if there was more to it than that? What if the current M&A trend wasn't a simple outcome of economics but rather was being boosted by government economic policies as a means to resolve Japan's own problems? Then you'd be looking at the Japanese equivalent of the Chinese solution. The Chinese are using their strong currency to buy up global resources -- they have plenty of internal demand so this is a good use of cash reserves. The Japanese on the other hand only need as much resources as they can actually store until they manufacture it into something, so the most storable form of future wealth based on currency strength is either gold, which doesn't produce future revenue flows, or ownership of foreign firms with strong market positions and strong future cash flow. This last week, two interesting news items in the financial press started us thinking that there is something going on behind the scenes that will have big repercussions for Japan and eventually for the man in the street. Both items make us think that the current wave of M&A interest could quickly become a tsunami, and create yet another bubble that at some stage would have to pop. Further, this bubble comes with some strong risks because of the relatively small size of some of the companies effecting the takeovers. Small size means less resources to bring to bear if things go wrong. [Continued below...] -- NAGAMINE & MISHIMA - Securing Your Success in Japan --- Starting a new company in Japan? Looking to streamline your current operations? The team of bilingual experts at Nagamine & Mishima is able to provide high quality accounting, payroll and tax services that both exceed expectations and fit your budget. Our services help customers improve their operations and bottom line results. To find out more about our services and how we can help your business in Japan succeed, please visit our website www.nagamine-mishima.com or reach us directly by telephone at 03-3581-1975 or by email at info at nagamine-mishima.com. ---------- YOUR BOTTOM LINE IS OUR TOP PRIORITY------------ [...Article continues] The first announcement came last week when the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) said it had signed agreements with three major private banks to provide them with JPY3.3trn credit lines to be used for foreign takeovers by the banks' Japanese customers. This is part of a larger US$100bn program announced back in August to get Japanese firms out of yen and in to dollars. This amount, along with the half trillion dollars in war chest funds that Japanese listed firms already have socked away, makes for a potent brew when it comes to leverage for ambitious Japanese firms looking to expand abroad. Companies of all sizes are getting the message that they can start looking at foreign M&As, and the leveraging involved is quite awe-inspiring -- some Japanese firms are paying 5x-20x on earnings of their targets and borrowing 90% of the acquisition price. Normally these multiples are the domain of venture capital. The second news item was a confirmation of the leveraging available to those firms willing to take the risks. A little known medical testing company called Miraca Holdings, announced this last week that it was taking over the life sciences arm of a Texas-based firm called Caris. Miraca is a small to mid-sized listed company that does about JPY166bn in revenues, and last year made JPY11bn in net profit. Actually these are pretty good margins for a Japanese firm. Anyway, Miraca is going to take over the Caris business for the not insignificant sum of US$725m (JPY56bn approx.), the funding of which will be just JPY8bn in cash already held by Miraca, and a bit less than JPY50bn to be taken on in new bank loans. The amortization of this acquisition will be 20 years -- a long, long stretch even by Japanese standards. This is truly impressive leveraging. Looking through the Miraca presentations (they have excellent English-language materials, which is probably a reflection of the fact that they are 56% owned by foreign investors), we can see that after amortization and bank loan interest costs, there will be almost no free cash flow from the acquisition, based on today's revenue/profit numbers from Caris. Now, true, the Caris business has a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of around 30%, so theoretically the Miraca folks should be well above water in 2-3 years time. But this makes some big assumptions, such as the fact that healthcare testing in the USA will continue its current torrid pace of growth, and that there won't be either: a) a recession, b) a change of government that de-emphasizes medical spending, or c) in the USA, the land of litigation, a class action law suit over testing issues that no one has thought about yet. Now, the Miraca senior management are not country bumpkins and are not newbies to the foreign market. They have an impressive track record of previous acquisitions, have a highly successful foreign business called Fujirebio, and their board of directors includes a who's who of former banking and pharma executives who also sit on the boards of other famous Japanese (and acquisitive) companies. So if we were a Japanese bank weighing up who to give money to, we'd probably pick someone like Miraca. But nonetheless, the previous largest M&A that Miraca had performed was a deal about 15% the size of the current one, and as yet there are no foreigners on the board of directors at all. So we wonder, just as we wonder for some of these other M&As going on, whether the board and executive management will be able to meet all the demands that taking over a large foreign business entails. Taking a cue from other medical M&As that have happened recently, there appear to be two ways forward that most Japanese firms are taking with a large foreign acquisition. One is to largely leave the acquired business alone and trust that the local management team there will do the right thing. An insider has told us that this is what Takeda have done with their 2008 US$8.8bn purchase of Millenium and we understand that to a certain extent this will be Miraca's approach. The other way is to keep things Japanese by bringing in an internationalized Japanese Director with a Stanford or Harvard MBA, to run the acquired target either in the foreground or background, and this is what Zeria has done with their US$130m Tillotts acquisition in Switzerland made back in 2009. So far, most of the pharma acquisitions made in the last few years are doing well, but you couldn't say that they have been properly stress tested yet. If the Japanese government, and specifically the Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry (METI) really thinks that foreign cash flows into Japanese holding companies is the way of the future, and given the pessimism amongst the Japanese themselves about the decline in their own economy this is understandable, then they need to do more than just make money available. Thinking into the future, there needs to be a whole support system for these companies who currently might know very little about running a foreign company (Miraca at least does have this experience), and who when faced with a crisis or adverse circumstances may not be able to react quickly or appropriately enough to address those problems. This support system has to include resources for language, management systems, law, labor relations, and a host of other issues. Also, like all bubbles, there are going to be a number of M&A deals out of this US$43bn which have a high possibility of going bad in the future. Despite their excellent management track records to date, we would class both the Miraca deal and also Rakuten's massive expansion as high-risk. Actually, the JPY43.3trn is probably going to be a pivot for much larger sums to be spent, and therefore if things do go poorly, this could put a huge strain on the Japanese banking system. Since these acquisitions are now in foreign jurisdictions, each bankruptcy will be very public and will cause a major loss of investor confidence in the banking entities behind such deals. We wonder if this is being thought through and if so, what the risk amelioration strategy is going to be? Government guarantees? ...The information janitors/ ***------------------------****-------------------------*** --------- BIOS - Bilingual IT Systems and Support --------- BiOS full-service IT solutions has a new service. Now the largest independently owned bilingual IT support company in Tokyo, BiOS offers some of the most competitive services available to multinationals whether large or small. Data Center staff and managed services, Help Desk, desktop, and network support. Server virtualization, cloud computing hosting and solutions, general software development. For more information on these and other SI and IT services, in English or Japanese: Phone: (03) 4588-2220, Email: solutions at biosjp.com Web: www.biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ NEWS - After-hours futures trading by amateurs popular - Sony to buy out Ericsson from cell phone j/v - Yahoo! getting ready to sell Yahoo! Japan stake - Good growth in LED market - Tsunami destruction tour -> After-hours futures trading by amateurs popular Common wisdom has it that Japan's markets follow those in the US, and amateur traders are now realizing that instead of waiting until the next morning to move their stock, they can trade in the after-hours markets with stock futures. Apparently the Osaka Securities Exchange (OSE) has futures trading available from 16:30 pm to 03:am and over the last 2 months trading has risen from 20% of daytime trading to 37% in August and 38% in September. (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Oct 8, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20111007D0710A13.htm -> Sony to buy out Ericsson from cell phone j/v Sony is negotiating with its joint venture partner in the cell phone business to buy our Ericsson's share of the firm. The Sony-Ericsson operation has sales of about EUR6.3bn but a net profit of just EUR90m. ***Ed: We wonder if this is a good move by Sony? Analysts say that Sony is fed up with Ericsson's slow decision-making and their basic lack of interest in cell phone devices given that it is more an infrastructure company. The problem for Sony is that this business doesn't really make money and with all the Ericsson patents that have to come with the deal, it will cost Sony dearly.** (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Oct 7, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20111006D0610F06.htm -> Yahoo! getting ready to sell Yahoo! Japan stake Media speculation is that Yahoo! in the USA is seeking advice from the US IRS about how to sell its 35% stake in Yahoo! Japan. Making the sale would earn Yahoo! about US$19bn, and would make it much easier for the shareholders to get a decent price now that Yahoo! is shopping itself for a buy-out by someone else. Amongst the companies wanting to buy Yahoo! are Alibaba, Silver Lake Partners, News Corp., a Russian company called Digital Sky Technologies, and possibly Microsoft. Yahoo! has a market value of nearly US$20bn. ***Ed: In other words Yahoo! Japan is triple the value of Yahoo! in the USA -- testament to the skills of the local management.** (Source: TT commentary from foxbusiness.com, Oct 7, 2011) http://fxn.ws/qFtZ79 -> Good growth in LED market The post-earthquake power shortages were great news for one industry in Japan: the LED manufacturers. Sales of LED light bulbs hit 60% of the total sold in Q3, and as prices steadily drop, annual growth is predicted to be 70%, taking LED market share to around 75%. Brand name LED bulb prices are already down 25% and with the market entry of Samsung and LG Electronics, this price point is expected to drop much further. (Source: TT commentary from digitimes.com, Oct 7, 2011) http://www.digitimes.com/news/a20111006PD213.html -> Tsunami destruction tour We wonder why it took so long. Finally a US adventure tourism company is offering US tourists a trip related to the tsunami-devasted areas in Tohoku, but with a twist -- the tourists will only see the debris swept out to sea. Apparently the tour, which starts next year, has has an ecotourism theme and aims to document the environmental impact of the Japan Tsunami Debris Field, which is making its way across the Pacific towards the US west coast. The tour will have two legs, one from the Marshall Islands and the other from Japan to Hawaii. ***Ed: Actually, the Japan Tsunami Debris Field is an interesting topic. See more at: http://bit.ly/ij5E6F.** (Source: TT commentary from telegraph.co.uk, Oct 7, 2011) http://tgr.ph/rioVZC NOTE: Broken links Many online news sources remove their articles after just a few days of posting them, thus breaking our links -- we apologize for the inconvenience. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CANDIDATE ROUND UP/VACANCIES => BiOS, a Division of the LINC Media group, is actively marketing the following positions for customers setting up or expanding in Japan, as well as other employers of bilinguals. ** HIGHLIGHTED POSITION BiOS is urgently looking for a Technical Support Engineer with experience in providing IT support to end users in the office of our client in the Bunkyo-ku area. The candidate will be responsible for providing level 1 and 2 support to approximately 350 end users who are predominately Japanese, as well as providing level-3 support of in-house network/server systems. You will also be responsible for creating work-flow manuals for IT team and end-users. Due to the technical nature and demanding work environment, this position is suitable for someone with solid experience as a desktop engineer supporting a day-to-day office environment. In addition, since this role requires extensive communications with IT engineers and end-users in English, daily conversational-level communication skill in English and native-level Japanese are required. Remuneration is JPY4m ? JPY4.5m depending on your experience and skill level. ** POSITIONS VACANT - Project Mgr (Data Center), global IT co, JPY8M ? JPY9.5M - Nw Engr, global telecommunications co., JPY6M ? JPY8M - Field Engineer, BiOS, JPY4.5M ? JPY5.5M - Assistant Editor, global publisher, JPY3M ? JPY3.5M - Service Delivery Manager, global IT co, JPY8M ? JPY10M Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: tomohiro.kimura at biosjp.com ** BiOS Job Mail Every 2 weeks BiOS sends out a regular communication to its job seeking candidates, called BiOS Job Mail. Every edition carries a list of BiOS's current and most up-to-date vacancies, with each entry featuring a short job description and a direct link to the main entry on the BiOS home page. Regardless of whether you are unemployed and searching, thinking about a career change, or just curious to know if there is something out there that might suit you better, the BiOS Job Mail newsletter is an easy and convenient way for you to stay informed. If you would like to register for the BiOS Job Mail, or to find out more, please email kenji.sakota at biosjp.com. Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: tomohiro.kimura at biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ UPCOMING EVENTS/ANNOUNCEMENTS --------- Official Apache Solr training in English -------- For engineers in Japan! (October 25-27, 2011) Train in Tokyo to become an expert Apache Solr engineer with a course developed by the engineers who helped write the Apache Lucene/Solr code. This intensive, three-day, hands-on, classroom course will be delivered in English by certified instructors on Oct. 25-27, 2011 in Tokyo. "Developing Search Applications With Solr" covers designing Solr applications, indexing, findability, Japanese search support, faceted navigation, admin configurations, etc. Training Info: http://www.lucidimagination.jp/training-en/ Registration: http://bit.ly/oNarEZ ----------------------------------------------------------- ----------------- ICA Event - October 26 ------------------ Speakers: Various from Apple Japan Title: Apple in Business Details: Complete event details at http://www.icajapan.jp/ (RSVP Required) Date: Wednesday, October 26, 2011 Time: 8:00am Doors open, Coffee and Light snacks provided Cost: Free, open to all Venue is Apple Store Shibuya http://www.apple.com/jp/retail/shibuya/map/ ----------------------------------------------------------- ---------------- Start a Company in Japan ----------------- Entrepreneur's Handbook Seminar 3rd of December, 2011 If you have been considering setting up your own company, find out what it takes to make it successful. Terrie Lloyd, founder of over 17 start-up companies in Japan, will be giving an English-language seminar and Q and A on starting up a company in Japan. This is an ideal opportunity to find out what is involved, and to ask specific questions that are not normally answered in business books. All materials are in English and are Japan-focused. For more details: http://www.japaninc.com/entrepreneur_handbook_seminar ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CORRECTIONS/FEEDBACK In this section we run comments and corrections submitted by readers. We encourage you to spot our mistakes and amplify our points, by email, to editors at terrie.com. *** No comments this week. *********************************************************** END SUBSCRIBERS: 8,386 members as of Oct 09, 2011 (We purge our list regularly.) +++ ABOUT US STAFF Written by: Terrie Lloyd (terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com) HELP: E-mail Terrie-request at mailman.japaninc.com with the word 'help' in the subject or body (don't include the quotes), and you will get back a message with instructions. FEEDBACK Send letters (Feedback, Inquiries & Information) to the editor to terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com. ADVERTISING INFORMATION For more information on advertising in this newsletter, Contact ads at japaninc.com. SUBSCRIBE Get Terrie's Take by giving your name and email address at http://www.japaninc.com/newsletters/free_sign_up, or go straight to Mailman at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ Copyright 2011 Japan Inc. Communications Inc. ----------------- Japan Inc opens up Japan ---------------- J at pan Inc is Japan's only independently published English- language business website. Authoritatively chronicling online the business trends in Japan, each posting brings you in-depth analysis of business, people and technology in the world's second largest economy. Visit www.japaninc.com for the best business insight on Japan available. ----------------------------------------------------------- -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From terrie at mailman.japaninc.com Mon Oct 17 09:09:15 2011 From: terrie at mailman.japaninc.com (Terrie's Take) Date: Mon, 17 Oct 2011 09:09:15 +0900 Subject: Terrie's Take 634 -- Pension Age to Rise to 70? ebiz news from Japan Message-ID: * * * * * * * * * T E R R I E 'S T A K E * * * * * * * A weekly roundup of news & information from Terrie Lloyd. (http://www.terrie.com) General Edition Sunday, October 16, 2011, Issue No. 634 +++ INDEX - What's New -- Pension Age to Rise to 70? - News -- PM so poor he must be honest - Candidate Roundup/Vacancies - Upcoming Events - Corrections/Feedback -- Japanese acquirers' inability to manage a global operation - News Credits SUBSCRIBE to, UNSUBSCRIBE from Terrie's Take at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take, or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ -------------- PBXL SUPPORTS SMALL BUSINESS --------------- MOVING TO A NEW OFFICE? DON'T BUY A PBX! At PBXL, we understand how expensive and time consuming it is to move into a new office, and we want to make sure that new businesses start off right. PBXL provides Cisco based scalable, high quality telephony and communications solutions. - Data center hosted, fully managed telephony solutions - Flexible to your business needs from 2 to 200 people - Avoid costly upfront purchases - Add phones as you grow Check out our website today at http://pbxl.jp e-mail us at info at pbxl.jp or call us at 03-4550-2557 ------------- PBXL is BUSINESS COMMUNICATIONS ------------- +++ WHAT'S NEW Politicians they come and go, but bureaucrats hang around for a life time, and in the end they do run the country. So when the Labor and Welfare Ministry floats a trial balloon saying that Japan may have to raise the pension age from the current target of 67 due to take place next year (up from 65 this year) to 70 years old, that's another way of seeing into the future. For anyone in their 40's or 50's the Ministry's announcement is really just a confirmation of what we all already know -- that it is unlikely that many of us will get to enjoy the return of our pension contributions despite the smooth talkers in the nation's leadership. In fact, it's easy to imagine that there won't be an automatic pension by the time we're 70 -- or 75, as it is likely to be in another 10 years time. The reason for this is three-fold: 1. The dwindling number of people able to contribute funds to support pensioners. The Welfare Ministry says that the ratio of employees supporting pensioners has fallen from 40:1 in 1979 to just 2.5:1 in 2009. That is: a 20th of the payment base, for significantly more pensioners -- clearly an unsustainable situation. [Continued below...] -- NAGAMINE & MISHIMA - Securing Your Success in Japan --- Starting a new company in Japan? Looking to streamline your current operations? The team of bilingual experts at Nagamine & Mishima is able to provide high quality accounting, payroll and tax services that both exceed expectations and fit your budget. Our services help customers improve their operations and bottom line results. To find out more about our services and how we can help your business in Japan succeed, please visit our website www.nagamine-mishima.com or reach us directly by telephone at 03-3581-1975 or by email at info at nagamine-mishima.com. ---------- YOUR BOTTOM LINE IS OUR TOP PRIORITY------------ [...Article continues] 2. The number of people who are drawing pensions is increasing rapidly. Out of the JPY75trn or so in this year's budget, social security spending for fiscal 2011 will be around JPY28.7trn, a record level. That's bad enough, but because of the ever-increasing number of retirees, who are living longer and who are receiving nursing care in increasing numbers, the social security budget will increase by JPY1.2trn annually from here on out. Meaning that within 5 years, HALF of the government budget will be spent on retirees. 3. The government is broke. Japan's GDP last year was JPY476trn and her public debt was JPY862trn. Since debt servicing costs about JPY10trn and overall tax income is about JPY40trn, borrowings exceeded income for the first time in 2010. This gap between income and lending will increase even more now that the government is running a JPY75trn budget, and this funding gap can only come from savings, borrowing, or more taxes. Until now about 96% of government borrowing has been from domestic funding sources, but the IMF says that by 2015 public debt will exceed household savings -- meaning that there are few places to turn to keep things going. For these reasons, the pension system and with it the overall concept of citizen entitlement has to change. Raising the pension age is just part of the program that will inevitably come. Here are some of the things that we believe will happen: 1. Pension age will rise to 70 by 2015 and to 75 by 2020. 2. Pension benefits already being paid out will be cut by 5%-10% over the next 5 years. Already, a deflation-adjusted cut is being discussed. 3. Hospitalized pensioners with significant assets will be required to pay a higher personal contribution to health costs, currently set at just 10% (30% for regular workers). 4. Intending pensioners will be encouraged to keep working longer before drawing a pension, by allowing tax and threshold changes in what they can earn from part-time jobs. This is also being discussed. 5. The Tohoku disaster-related tax increases of 5%-10% being mooted for 10 years will become permanent. 6. Consumption tax will rise to 10% in 2014 and to 20% by 2020 (a Todai professor recently said that 20% consumption tax would actually support the current pension system without further adjustments -- a big temptation for politicians). 7. Social Insurance (shakai hoken) costs to companies and individuals are supposed to top out at 22% over the next 10 years or so, but are instead likely to keep rising. This all makes for rather bleak reading, and certainly it is bleak IF Japan continues to stick to the idea that pensions should be an entitlement. However, there is an alternative future. In it, the working population will say, "We've had enough" and vote in a party (or a faction) that represents the youth and vigor of the nation more than pandering to old folks. That party will appeal to older people to do the right thing for their nation and accept that only those who really need financial support should get it, leaving everyone else to live off savings and assets. It's a tough call, but to continue in the current direction of increasing taxes both direct and indirect can only damage Japan's economy beyond repair, accelerating the exit of companies and people. And it doesn't take much imagination to see that the quicker they leave, the quicker the problem will get worse. ...The information janitors/ ***------------------------****-------------------------*** --------- BIOS - Bilingual IT Systems and Support --------- BiOS full-service IT solutions has a new service. Now the largest independently owned bilingual IT support company in Tokyo, BiOS offers some of the most competitive services available to multinationals whether large or small. Data Center staff and managed services, Help Desk, desktop, and network support. Server virtualization, cloud computing hosting and solutions, general software development. For more information on these and other SI and IT services, in English or Japanese: Phone: (03) 4588-2220, Email: solutions at biosjp.com Web: www.biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ NEWS - PM so asset-poor he must be honest - New study shows strong foreign hiring - Plankton contaminated with cesium - Palm oil waste into coking fuel - Hitachi to dispatch thousands overseas -> PM so asset-poor he must be honest We hope there will come a time when all politicians are forced to have an income UNDER a certain threshold or they can't represent their country. If that was to come to pass, a sure qualifier in the honesty stakes would be the new PM, Yoshihiko Noda, who has disclosed family assets of just JPY17.74m, the lowest ever for a Japanese prime minister. Noda apparently has a house in Chiba worth JPY15.14m and JPY2.6m in savings. ***Ed: Even more impressive is that these numbers include the assets of his wife.** (Source: TT commentary from mainichi.jp, Oct 15, 2011) http://mdn.mainichi.jp/mdnnews/news/20111015p2g00m0dm012000c.html -> New study shows strong foreign hiring A new study put out by serviced offices firm Regus has found that 63% of Japanese companies plan to hire foreign workers over the next two years, the largest increase in intent to hire foreigners amongst the global 12,800 businesses polled. Germany was second with 59%. Smaller Japanese companies were characterized in the study as turning to flexible labor, with 47% planning to increase the use of freelancers and 35% the use of remote staff. Despite the increases, Japan is apparently still well behind SMEs elsewhere in the world in this respect. (Source: TT commentary from Regus press release, Oct 14, 2011) http://bit.ly/naRqRk -> Plankton contaminated with cesium In a development that will be concerning to the Japanese public, plankton caught around the Fukushima Daiichi power plant have been found to contain cesium contamination. The Tokyo University of Marine Science said plankton caught 3km from the plant measured 669 becquerels/kg, not high, but prone to further concentration as the animals are consumed and absorbed into the food chain of larger fish. (Source: TT commentary from nhk.or.jp, Oct 15, 2011) http://www3.nhk.or.jp/daily/english/15_08.html -> Palm oil waste into coking fuel The mountains of waste from palm oil processing factories all over southeast asia may soon be a thing of the past, as Nippon Steel Engineering (NSE) brings its new waste-to-coking fuel plant on stream in 2013. NSE will be the first Japanese entrant into the field and plans to produce about 3,000 tons of the CO2 neutral fuel a year. The fuel will be sold to Japan, particularly targeting local government waste incineration plants. (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Oct 16, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20111015D15JFF03.htm -> Hitachi to dispatch thousands overseas Whether you are good at English or not, if you're an employee of Hitachi there is no place to hide. The company is planning to dispatch 2,000 "lucky" employees in their 20's and early 30's to short-term overseas positions within the group, customer offices, and language schools, over 2012. The company also plans to redo their promising employee training programs, creating a more "practical" curriculum for 3,600 future leaders. ***Ed: Would be interesting to hear more about their plans for the local restructured training. More language? Or more socialization skills? (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Oct 15, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20111014D1410A03.htm NOTE: Broken links Many online news sources remove their articles after just a few days of posting them, thus breaking our links -- we apologize for the inconvenience. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CANDIDATE ROUND UP/VACANCIES => BiOS, a Division of the LINC Media group, is actively marketing the following positions for customers setting up or expanding in Japan, as well as other employers of bilinguals. ** HIGHLIGHTED POSITION BiOS is urgently looking for a Technical Support Engineer with experience in providing IT support to end users in the office of our client in the Bunkyo-ku area. The candidate will be responsible for providing level 1 and 2 support to approximately 350 end users who are predominately Japanese, as well as providing level-3 support of in-house network/server systems. You will also be responsible for creating work-flow manuals for IT team and end-users. Due to the technical nature and demanding work environment, this position is suitable for someone with solid experience as a desktop engineer supporting a day-to-day office environment. In addition, since this role requires extensive communications with IT engineers and end-users in English, daily conversational-level communication skill in English and native-level Japanese are required. Remuneration is JPY4m ? JPY4.5m depending on your experience and skill level. ** POSITIONS VACANT - Project Mgr (Data Center), global IT co, JPY8M ? JPY9.5M - Nw Engr, global telecommunications co., JPY6M ? JPY8M - Field Engineer, BiOS, JPY4.5M ? JPY5.5M - Assistant Editor, global publisher, JPY3M ? JPY3.5M - Service Delivery Manager, global IT co, JPY8M ? JPY10M Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: tomohiro.kimura at biosjp.com ** BiOS Job Mail Every 2 weeks BiOS sends out a regular communication to its job seeking candidates, called BiOS Job Mail. Every edition carries a list of BiOS's current and most up-to-date vacancies, with each entry featuring a short job description and a direct link to the main entry on the BiOS home page. Regardless of whether you are unemployed and searching, thinking about a career change, or just curious to know if there is something out there that might suit you better, the BiOS Job Mail newsletter is an easy and convenient way for you to stay informed. If you would like to register for the BiOS Job Mail, or to find out more, please email kenji.sakota at biosjp.com. Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: tomohiro.kimura at biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ UPCOMING EVENTS/ANNOUNCEMENTS --------- Official Apache Solr training in English -------- For engineers in Japan! (October 25-27, 2011) Train in Tokyo to become an expert Apache Solr engineer with a course developed by the engineers who helped write the Apache Lucene/Solr code. This intensive, three-day, hands-on, classroom course will be delivered in English by certified instructors on Oct. 25-27, 2011 in Tokyo. "Developing Search Applications With Solr" covers designing Solr applications, indexing, findability, Japanese search support, faceted navigation, admin configurations, etc. Training Info: http://www.lucidimagination.jp/training-en/ Registration: http://bit.ly/oNarEZ ----------------------------------------------------------- ----------------- ICA Event - October 26 ------------------ Speakers: Various from Apple Japan Title: Apple in Business Details: Complete event details at http://www.icajapan.jp/ (RSVP Required) Date: Wednesday, October 26, 2011 Time: 8:00am Doors open, Coffee and Light snacks provided Cost: Free, open to all Venue is Apple Store Shibuya http://www.apple.com/jp/retail/shibuya/map/ ----------------------------------------------------------- ---------------- Start a Company in Japan ----------------- Entrepreneur's Handbook Seminar 3rd of December, 2011 If you have been considering setting up your own company, find out what it takes to make it successful. Terrie Lloyd, founder of over 17 start-up companies in Japan, will be giving an English-language seminar and Q and A on starting up a company in Japan. This is an ideal opportunity to find out what is involved, and to ask specific questions that are not normally answered in business books. All materials are in English and are Japan-focused. For more details: http://www.japaninc.com/entrepreneur_handbook_seminar ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CORRECTIONS/FEEDBACK In this section we run comments and corrections submitted by readers. We encourage you to spot our mistakes and amplify our points, by email, to editors at terrie.com. *** In TT-633 Are We in an M&A Bubble? we discussed the concern of smaller Japanese firms over-leveraging themselves in the rush to foreign acquisitions. A reader picks up on the ability of such firms to not only finance their new trophies should things go bad abroad, but also their ability to run them as well. => Reader says: I like the summary of the M&A situation that you give in the latest Take. From personal experience I don't think that Japanese companies are capable of competently managing a foreign subsidiary. I have just left a major Japanese financial company after several years and part of the reason was the lack of ability in management in Japan to bring the company together. Outside of Japan things work better but true globalization hit a block when Japanese management was consulted and sacred cows protected. For me the international "experiment" has failed and the primary reason is the lack of direction from management. In my time with the firm there was never any stated strategy, agreed goals, and little communication. We were basically running blind. Thus I fully agree the need for guidance either from the government, or it could even come from the private sector if there was an organization with that kind of expertise. At the point of purchase the strategy for the merger should be understood and agreed upon. Is it full globalization or will the entities be managed separately? And if it is full globalization then will the final culture of the firm be the international culture or not? That question applies even here in Japan. There are two reasons for this. The first is that the direction needs to be set at the very start in order for the integration process to move forward quickly. The second is that the appropriate management can be put in place. A Japanese manager with little experience outside of Japan and no experience outside of the company cannot run the integration in the majority of cases. I actually see this as a huge risk for Japan. From practical experience, I suspect that the actual ROI on the average acquisition by a Japanese company is going to be very poor due to this lack of ability to integrate and lack of desire to change. I am afraid that all the cash that has been built up will be wasted with little return. The need for the kind of organization you mention is critical and will make a huge difference in the economy of Japan for the next 20 to 30 years. *********************************************************** END SUBSCRIBERS: 8,369 members as of Oct 16, 2011 (We purge our list regularly.) +++ ABOUT US STAFF Written by: Terrie Lloyd (terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com) HELP: E-mail Terrie-request at mailman.japaninc.com with the word 'help' in the subject or body (don't include the quotes), and you will get back a message with instructions. FEEDBACK Send letters (Feedback, Inquiries & Information) to the editor to terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com. ADVERTISING INFORMATION For more information on advertising in this newsletter, Contact ads at japaninc.com. SUBSCRIBE Get Terrie's Take by giving your name and email address at http://www.japaninc.com/newsletters/free_sign_up, or go straight to Mailman at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ Copyright 2011 Japan Inc. Communications Inc. ----------------- Japan Inc opens up Japan ---------------- J at pan Inc is Japan's only independently published English- language business website. Authoritatively chronicling online the business trends in Japan, each posting brings you in-depth analysis of business, people and technology in the world's second largest economy. Visit www.japaninc.com for the best business insight on Japan available. ----------------------------------------------------------- -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From terrie at mailman.japaninc.com Sun Oct 23 23:41:53 2011 From: terrie at mailman.japaninc.com (Terrie's Take) Date: Sun, 23 Oct 2011 23:41:53 +0900 Subject: Terrie's Take 635 -- Roller Coaster of Olympus Meltdown, ebiz news from Japan Message-ID: * * * * * * * * * T E R R I E 'S T A K E * * * * * * * A weekly roundup of news & information from Terrie Lloyd. (http://www.terrie.com) General Edition Sunday, October 23, 2011, Issue No. 635 +++ INDEX - What's New -- Roller Coaster of Olympus Meltdown - News -- Suntory to buy out Evian & Volvic? - Candidate Roundup/Vacancies - Upcoming Events - Corrections/Feedback -- Right wingers with too much time on their hands - News Credits SUBSCRIBE to, UNSUBSCRIBE from Terrie's Take at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take, or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ -------------- PBXL SUPPORTS SMALL BUSINESS --------------- MOVING TO A NEW OFFICE? DON'T BUY A PBX! At PBXL, we understand how expensive and time consuming it is to move into a new office, and we want to make sure that new businesses start off right. PBXL provides Cisco based scalable, high quality telephony and communications solutions. - Data center hosted, fully managed telephony solutions - Flexible to your business needs from 2 to 200 people - Avoid costly upfront purchases - Add phones as you grow Check out our website today at http://pbxl.jp e-mail us at info at pbxl.jp or call us at 03-4550-2557 ------------- PBXL is BUSINESS COMMUNICATIONS ------------- +++ WHAT'S NEW An amazing story is unfolding before us here in Japan involving over a billion dollars of potential fraud. At the heart of the scandal is an autocratic Chairman, who may or may not have bilked investors in his public company of that huge sum. The company we're referring to is Olympus, and the ruler of that fiefdom is Tsuyoshi Kikukawa. The way the events have unfolded, well you couldn't write a better fiction novel. Olympus was founded in 1919 and early on in its existence decided that microscopes and scientific optical gear would be its domain. It's had a number of corporate captains since the passing of the founders and the current one is Chairman Kikukawa. He is a product of Japan's golden age, entering Olympus straight out of law school in 1964 and rising gradually through the ranks until he was running the show in 1998. Around him are similar directors and managers, all of whom are loyal and eager to please, and like their boss they have mostly risen up through the ranks by being generalists and playing the corporate game well. [Continued below...] -- NAGAMINE & MISHIMA - Securing Your Success in Japan --- Starting a new company in Japan? Looking to streamline your current operations? The team of bilingual experts at Nagamine & Mishima is able to provide high quality accounting, payroll and tax services that both exceed expectations and fit your budget. Our services help customers improve their operations and bottom line results. To find out more about our services and how we can help your business in Japan succeed, please visit our website www.nagamine-mishima.com or reach us directly by telephone at 03-3581-1975 or by email at info at nagamine-mishima.com. ---------- YOUR BOTTOM LINE IS OUR TOP PRIORITY------------ [...Article continues] In 2006, Kikukawa realized that the Japanese domestic market was grinding to a halt, dragged down by politics and a declining economy, so he contacted an acquaintance named Hajime 'Jim' Sagawa, an ex-Nomura banker living in New York since 1980, to start looking for foreign acquisitions. Sagawa apparently quickly identified Britain's Gyrus as a takeover target and Olympus bought the company in 2008 for the impressive sum of US$2.2bn. Sagawa appears to have had two companies involved in taking commissions from the Gyrus deal, one, AXES in New York, which received a modest fee income of US$7m, and the other AXAM, which eventually received US$620m and was based in the Cayman Islands, well outside the reach of the U.S. taxman. AXAM was de-registered shortly after the transactions were completed. How convenient. After acquiring Gyrus, a major company in its own right, Kikukawa got to see how a top-rank western company is run and no doubt realized that the future lay in competitive practices that relied less on corporate politics and more on information, cost-control processes, and IT. To make sure that the acquisition went well, he offered a rising star in the Olympus Europe business, Michael Woodford, a senior position in Japan. Woodford quickly settled into the new position, and within 6 months, Kikukawa had kicked himself upstairs (to Chairman) and installed Woodford as CEO. What Kikukawa hadn't counted on, however, was the fact that he was hiring a tiger into his team of Tokyo-based donkeys -- hard-working donkeys, yes, but in the end men who would say yes when required to. Woodford, though, was the product of a cut-throat corporate culture in Europe, and upon landing the top job at Olympus Head Office apparently started setting about making sure that his position was secure from outside (or inside) attack. From what Woodford says, it very quickly became clear to him that not only was there a lack of competency in the senior management on the board, but that some troubling financial transactions had occurred as well. He started digging, bringing in PwC to audit the transactions, and what he found shocked him enough that he must have realized he was sitting on a powder keg and had better cover his back. Survivor that he is, he moved quickly and confronted Kikukawa and the Olympus board with the evidence. It was a personal broadside they couldn't handle, perhaps because they were involved in the fraud or perhaps because they realized they would be cast as being incredibly incompetent. Either way, Woodford's evidence would cost them their jobs. So they moved first and unanimously fired Woodford for "not understanding the necessity of drawing on the corporate and Japanese culture in running the business." But you don't want to corner a tiger, and what they didn't know is that Woodford had plenty of resources to fight back, including the smartest move of all -- he went to the Serious Fraud Office in the UK, since the Gyrus acquisition happened there, and provided evidence of suspicious payments between Olympus and the advisors of the Gyrus deal. We're not talking about the typical 1%-2% fees that most brokers would receive on a US$2.2bn transaction, but instead a whopping 30% -- which Reuters has since reported is the largest M&A fee ever made anywhere! As a point of contrast, the largest fee paid up until then was a US$217m commission paid by RFS Holdings (Royal Bank of Scotland) for a EUR70bn takeover of ABN AMRO in 2007. Puts things into perspective doesn't it? Woodford also found out about 3 other unusual and hugely expensive transactions here in Japan as well, which we believe pretty much prove that Kikukawa and co. were up to something shady. PwC found out that Olympus had paid about JPY80bn (at that time around US$773m) for 3 tiny, privately held companies in Japan, which between them weren't making more than JPY3bn in revenues and which were in areas totally unrelated to the Olympus core business. Just the year after the three deals were done, Olympus quietly wrote down the purchases by more than 70%, or around US$586m in impairment losses. It is unbelievable that the management of such a major public company would make such terrible purchasing decisions repeatedly and allow themselves to lose such a huge amount of company money. One mistake could be considered incompetence, but four times running implies something much more suspicious and deliberate. No one knows at this stage whether Kikukawa was the beneficiary of these deals or not, but as the old saying goes, "follow the money". Now that the British SFO is on the case, the Japanese financial authorities really have no choice but to take up the matter and we think this will most likely wind up with Kikukawa at least being charged with negligence and being deposed from the company. What is most disturbing is that if there wasn't a foreign transaction, and if no foreigners had been involved in the deal, then the Olympus scandal probably would have never seen the light of day. Kikukawa "owns" the Olympus board, with only 3 outside directors, and at least one of them a personal friend, it is unlikely that they would have challenged the Big Boss over the losses. Indeed, they never did challenge him in the 3 years following Gyrus and the other losses. In the longer term, this episode also means that hiring a senior foreigner into a major Japanese company can spell big trouble for existing management. Transgressions can no longer be kept in the family when there are prying outsiders looking at the books, and so the potential for things to blow up increases dramatically. We believe that Japanese firms who might have been thinking to promote foreigners up through the ranks will be watching the Olympus scandal with trepidation and will be pulling back from any hiring plans they may have had. The reader who commented in TT-634 last week about a certain major Japanese investment bank that has similar "sacred cows" and entrenched management cliques, has turned out to be very prescient. ...The information janitors/ ***------------------------****-------------------------*** --------- BIOS - Bilingual IT Systems and Support --------- BiOS full-service IT solutions has a new service. Now the largest independently owned bilingual IT support company in Tokyo, BiOS offers some of the most competitive services available to multinationals whether large or small. Data Center staff and managed services, Help Desk, desktop, and network support. Server virtualization, cloud computing hosting and solutions, general software development. For more information on these and other SI and IT services, in English or Japanese: Phone: (03) 4588-2220, Email: solutions at biosjp.com Web: www.biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ NEWS - KDDI going international? - Tepco to sell portion of Eurus to Toyota - Suntory to buy out Evian & Volvic? - Odiferous gas yields oncology clues - Japan surpasses France for 3-star restaurants -> KDDI going international? An innocuous acquisition by KDDI may indicate that the firm is finding a way into the international markets, without having to do a massive M&A like NTT Comms did with Verio years ago (much to NTT's subsequent regret). KDDI is buying out for JPY12.8bn 85.5% of Korean company CDNetworks. CDNetworks technology speeds up the delivery of content to mobile users in 31 countries around the world -- from what we can tell, a sort of "Akamai" for the cell phone world. ***Ed: This seems like a great niche business to be in, and one that is sufficiently upstream that it will be somewhat impervious to user vagaries.** (Source: TT commentary from businesswire.com, Oct 13, 2011) http://bit.ly/o5YDEo -> Tepco to sell portion of Eurus to Toyota Well, it looks like the "Great Tokyo Electric Power Co. (TEPCO) Asset Sell-off", to partly cover the costs of its nuclear victim compensation pay-outs, has started. Although somewhat modest, TEPCO is said by Nikkei to be selling a 20% stake in wind power producer Eurus Energy to Toyota Tsusho (who already owns 40%) for JPY20bn. ***Ed: TEPCO has plenty more assets to sell, and we're surprised, actually, that they are only selling 20% of Eurus to Toyota. A true commitment to making good on the victim damages done so far should have been much more. We wouldn't be surprised if they draw more flak for this point.** (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Oct 22, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20111022D22JFF01.htm -> Suntory to buy out Evian & Volvic? Just why they are doing it, we're not sure, but Danone of France has apparently asked Suntory if the Japanese firm would like to buy out its mineral water business, starting with Evian and Volvic in Asia. The Nikkei is saying that the asking price is around JPY500bn for a business that has sales of around EUR2.87bn (JPY300bn). ***Ed: What we don't understand is that Danone's water business rose 5.3% last year and is expected to continue growing strongly in emerging economies such as Indonesia, where they have top market share. We can only imagine that either they are having problems elsewhere in the business and need the cash, or that they don't see a lot more growth due to competition. Either way, this can't be wonderful news for Suntory -- although we are sure they will still jump at the chance of buying such prestigious brands.** (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Oct 21, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20111021D21EE887.htm -> Odiferous gas yields oncology clues Believe it or not, researchers at Nagoya University have created a method of testing wind passed by patients to assess their likelihood of having colorectal cancer. No laughing matter, especially when the current alternative is a colonoscopy (ouch!), the scientists have found that colorectal cancer patients have a higher measure of methyl mercaptan, a sulfur compound produced by later stage cancers. The gas samples are collected in special bags that absorb the methyl mercaptan, and which are then are tested with a sophisticated machine at Hiroshima University. (Source: TT commentary from japantimes.co.jp, Oct 22, 2011) http://www.japantimes.co.jp/text/nn20111022a2.html -> Japan surpasses France for 3-star restaurants Not sure how the French feel about it, or if they even care given the current Euro turmoil, but nonetheless it is a sign of the times that Japan now officially has more 3-star Michelin Guide restaurants than does France. The tally is 29 in Japan versus 25 in France. Tokyo came in first with 14 3-star establishments, then Kyoto with 7, Osaka with 5, and Kobe and Nara with the other 3. There apparently has been a lot of controversy over the new 2012 rankings, which include a Korean-food restaurant called Houba in Osaka. (Source: TT commentary from http://tgr.ph/q3djrw NOTE: Broken links Many online news sources remove their articles after just a few days of posting them, thus breaking our links -- we apologize for the inconvenience. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CANDIDATE ROUND UP/VACANCIES => BiOS, a Division of the LINC Media group, is actively marketing the following positions for customers setting up or expanding in Japan, as well as other employers of bilinguals. ** HIGHLIGHTED POSITION BiOS is urgently looking for a Service Delivery Manager with experience providing business-side management of data center operations at our client?s office in the Chuou-ku area. The candidate will be responsible for directly negotiating with multinational clients when providing technical support and facility management of the data center services. The candidate will also coordinate with internal departments regarding schedules and scopes of available resources to provide to the clients. You will also be responsible for managing official documents including legal contracts such as: SLA, SOW, NDA, etc., by coordinating with the sales, legal, and IT departments. Due to the technical nature and demanding work environment, this position is suitable for someone with solid experience managing or delivering data center services. In addition, since this role requires direct negotiations with both Japanese and international clients, business-level communication skills in English and fluent Japanese will be required. Remuneration is JPY9m ? JPY11m depending on your experience and skill level. ** POSITIONS VACANT - Data Center Engr (Osaka), global bank, JPY3.5M ? JPY 4.5M - Editor in Chief, publishing co, JPY4M ? JPY5M - Bilingual Desktop Engr, global telecomms, JPY4M ? JPY4.5M - Sales Executive, global SI co, JPY8M ? JPY11M - Project manager (VoIP), global SI co, JPY7M ? JPY8.5M Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: tomohiro.kimura at biosjp.com ** BiOS Job Mail Every 2 weeks BiOS sends out a regular communication to its job seeking candidates, called BiOS Job Mail. Every edition carries a list of BiOS's current and most up-to-date vacancies, with each entry featuring a short job description and a direct link to the main entry on the BiOS home page. Regardless of whether you are unemployed and searching, thinking about a career change, or just curious to know if there is something out there that might suit you better, the BiOS Job Mail newsletter is an easy and convenient way for you to stay informed. If you would like to register for the BiOS Job Mail, or to find out more, please email kenji.sakota at biosjp.com. Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: tomohiro.kimura at biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ UPCOMING EVENTS/ANNOUNCEMENTS --------- Official Apache Solr training in English -------- For engineers in Japan! (October 25-27, 2011) Train in Tokyo to become an expert Apache Solr engineer with a course developed by the engineers who helped write the Apache Lucene/Solr code. This intensive, three-day, hands-on, classroom course will be delivered in English by certified instructors on Oct. 25-27, 2011 in Tokyo. "Developing Search Applications With Solr" covers designing Solr applications, indexing, findability, Japanese search support, faceted navigation, admin configurations, etc. Training Info: http://www.lucidimagination.jp/training-en/ Registration: http://bit.ly/oNarEZ ----------------------------------------------------------- ----------------- ICA Event - October 26 ------------------ Speakers: Various from Apple Japan Title: Apple in Business Details: Complete event details at http://www.icajapan.jp/ (RSVP Required) Date: Wednesday, October 26, 2011 Time: 8:00am Doors open, Coffee and Light snacks provided Cost: Free, open to all Venue is Apple Store Shibuya http://www.apple.com/jp/retail/shibuya/map/ ----------------------------------------------------------- ---------------- Start a Company in Japan ----------------- Entrepreneur's Handbook Seminar 3rd of December, 2011 If you have been considering setting up your own company, find out what it takes to make it successful. Terrie Lloyd, founder of over 17 start-up companies in Japan, will be giving an English-language seminar and Q and A on starting up a company in Japan. This is an ideal opportunity to find out what is involved, and to ask specific questions that are not normally answered in business books. All materials are in English and are Japan-focused. For more details: http://www.japaninc.com/entrepreneur_handbook_seminar ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CORRECTIONS/FEEDBACK In this section we run comments and corrections submitted by readers. We encourage you to spot our mistakes and amplify our points, by email, to editors at terrie.com. *** We often get general reader comments, and here is a good one expressing surprise that the right wingers still have a quorum when it comes to anti-Korean protests. => Reader says: A few weeks ago in one of your Terrie's Take's you commented on Korea phobia by some parts of the community. Not so long ago I went to Odaiba for a few hours with my family, and when I arrived at Daiba Station around noon, there was one of those uyoku trucks parked across the street from Fuji TV (in front of Aqua City or thereabouts), and a number of people scattered about the area holding Japanese flags in the air. By sometime after 2 pm, I was at the other end of the block coming out of the Joypolis side when we came upon a group of several hundred protesters in an organized march. There were police all around them and manning other parts of the street as well. A number of pedestrians stopped for a photo opportunity...I didn't bother, but it was quite a spectacle. Thought you might be interested to know this is still going on. I was a bit surprised myself about the longevity of it all. Rather than worry about it though, the only thought that crossed my mind was "Yoppodo hima da ne...!" It always amazes me that so many people have nothing better to do. *********************************************************** END SUBSCRIBERS: 8,363 members as of Oct 23, 2011 (We purge our list regularly.) +++ ABOUT US STAFF Written by: Terrie Lloyd (terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com) HELP: E-mail Terrie-request at mailman.japaninc.com with the word 'help' in the subject or body (don't include the quotes), and you will get back a message with instructions. FEEDBACK Send letters (Feedback, Inquiries & Information) to the editor to terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com. ADVERTISING INFORMATION For more information on advertising in this newsletter, Contact ads at japaninc.com. SUBSCRIBE Get Terrie's Take by giving your name and email address at http://www.japaninc.com/newsletters/free_sign_up, or go straight to Mailman at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ Copyright 2011 Japan Inc. Communications Inc. ----------------- Japan Inc opens up Japan ---------------- J at pan Inc is Japan's only independently published English- language business website. Authoritatively chronicling online the business trends in Japan, each posting brings you in-depth analysis of business, people and technology in the world's second largest economy. Visit www.japaninc.com for the best business insight on Japan available. ----------------------------------------------------------- -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From terrie at mailman.japaninc.com Mon Oct 31 07:56:13 2011 From: terrie at mailman.japaninc.com (Terrie's Take) Date: Mon, 31 Oct 2011 07:56:13 +0900 Subject: Terrie's Take 636 -- New Unskilled Worker Immigration? ebiz news from Japan Message-ID: * * * * * * * * * T E R R I E 'S T A K E * * * * * * * A weekly roundup of news & information from Terrie Lloyd. (http://www.terrie.com) General Edition Sunday, October 30, 2011, Issue No. 636 +++ INDEX - What's New -- New Unskilled Worker Immigration? - News -- Despite tsunami, nuclear power still much cheaper - Candidate Roundup/Vacancies - Upcoming Events - Corrections/Feedback -- Michael Woodford praise - News Credits SUBSCRIBE to, UNSUBSCRIBE from Terrie's Take at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take, or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ -------------- PBXL SUPPORTS SMALL BUSINESS --------------- MOVING TO A NEW OFFICE? DON'T BUY A PBX! At PBXL, we understand how expensive and time consuming it is to move into a new office, and we want to make sure that new businesses start off right. PBXL provides Cisco based scalable, high quality telephony and communications solutions. - Data center hosted, fully managed telephony solutions - Flexible to your business needs from 2 to 200 people - Avoid costly upfront purchases - Add phones as you grow Check out our website today at http://pbxl.jp e-mail us at info at pbxl.jp or call us at 03-4550-2557 ------------- PBXL is BUSINESS COMMUNICATIONS ------------- +++ WHAT'S NEW Interesting news out on Friday that the Japanese government is telling major manufacturers hit by the floods in Thailand that they can bring their Thai workforces to Japan for up to 6 months. According to the Nikkei, the chief cabinet secretary, Osamu Fujimura, is saying that they will give permission to around 30 companies to bring in "thousands" of people. There are no deeper details at this stage as to which companies will be allowed to bring people in, nor which visa mechanism the government will use. A training visa perhaps? Or maybe some kind of special purpose visa that automatically expires after 6 months? This program is a surprisingly dynamic and pragmatic response from the government, and it's also filled with challenging points of risk. For example, what about the risk of Thai workers suddenly doing a "runner" and trying to get work from some other company here in Japan? The constitution guarantees the right of employment to all, and once someone is legally working here, we assume it will cover these temporary workers as well. We can just see workers unions picking up on some of these Thai workers and pointing out that they are being underpaid, overworked, disadvantaged, or whatever -- which we imagine they will be... Companies are hardly likely to be bringing these Thai workers in at Japanese rates. Probably they will given free housing and air fares, then paid the same salary as they have been getting back in Thailand. Given the cost of food here, there won't be much left over. [Continued below...] -- NAGAMINE & MISHIMA - Securing Your Success in Japan --- Starting a new company in Japan? Looking to streamline your current operations? The team of bilingual experts at Nagamine & Mishima is able to provide high quality accounting, payroll and tax services that both exceed expectations and fit your budget. Our services help customers improve their operations and bottom line results. To find out more about our services and how we can help your business in Japan succeed, please visit our website www.nagamine-mishima.com or reach us directly by telephone at 03-3581-1975 or by email at info at nagamine-mishima.com. ---------- YOUR BOTTOM LINE IS OUR TOP PRIORITY------------ [...Article continues] Then what about health support issues? Thousands of people from a developing country are bound to mean thousands of sickness cases that have to be medically seen to by someone who can communicate with them, and that's not counting potential issues with health insurance. OK, maybe the companies will be made to cover the health costs, but it only takes one bad appendicitis case where the Thai worker dies, to make this program and the country to look really bad. When bureaucrats think out of the box and take a risk like this, they are probably not just doing it to help 30 companies over a difficult 6 months. No, rather, we suspect that this is a trial run for a larger program to be implemented at some point. That is, Japan may be gearing up for a new form of low-cost labor -- bringing in groups of people for short periods and ensuring that they have to go home afterwards. This is essentially what the "training" visas have been up until now, but those visas required long-term commitment on both sides and due to suicides, trainee detentions and abuse, have been thoroughly discredited. So how do we tell if this is a deeper move? The clue will be in just how detailed the visa arrangements are. If highly structured, then our take is that this is a dead give away that there is longer-term thinking at work. If so, then who in Japan needs a group of unskilled workers with short-term visas? Clearly the big manufacturers do. As the floods in Thailand have amply revealed. Japan may have diversified its manufacturing base, but it is still very vulnerable to localized events like the floods. The same thing would apply to manufacturers in China. A sweeping anti-Japanese political movement would quickly disable key manufacturing plants around that country. But the group that we think most needs these visas is the agricultural sector. Farms don't need intensive care all year round. The main time of need is harvesting, followed by sowing or spring-time preparation. Up in Hokkaido last week, we were told of a major blueberry farm which is allowing tons of its valuable crop to rot on the ground due to a lack of labor to pick and pack. Because of the aging population in the farming sector, this scenario is being repeated around the nation's many apple, peach, pear, corn, onion, cabbage, and other fruit and vegetable farms. There are a number of other countries which have the same agricultural labor shortage problems and which have confronted these with viable solutions -- Germany, Australia, and NZ to name a few. But the country that seems most advanced in recognizing the need for seasonal migrant workers and structuring for that need is Canada, which has its Seasonal Agricultural Workers Program (SAWP). About 16,000 seasonal migrant workers travel from Mexico, the Caribbean, and some other countries to work in apple and other fruit harvesting; canning/food processing; bee and flower production; and ginseng, sod, tobacco, and greenhouse and field vegetable harvesting every year. Importantly, SAWP protects those temporary workers in terms of pay, health, and other support. The average hourly wage in 2006 was CA$8.58. Workers are able to stay in Canada for up to 8 months, earning "good worker credits" from the farms, and with these credit ratings they can then go to the top of the applicant list for the following year. Here is a good story on the Canadian program: http://bit.ly/uQuqhJ. This could work in Japan. The current program for bringing Thai workers to Japan is a good idea, but the devil will be in the details. If the planned temporary migration is part of a bigger experiment, then we just hope that the Japanese look further afield for an immigration model and introduce a transparent and properly structured program that works better to protect the rights and conditions of foreign temporary workers than the previous training visa program did. ...The information janitors/ ***------------------------****-------------------------*** --------- BIOS - Bilingual IT Systems and Support --------- BiOS full-service IT solutions has a new service. Now the largest independently owned bilingual IT support company in Tokyo, BiOS offers some of the most competitive services available to multinationals whether large or small. Data Center staff and managed services, Help Desk, desktop, and network support. Server virtualization, cloud computing hosting and solutions, general software development. For more information on these and other SI and IT services, in English or Japanese: Phone: (03) 4588-2220, Email: solutions at biosjp.com Web: www.biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ NEWS - Despite tsunami, nuclear power still much cheaper - Baird Brewing back in the news - Vacation Veranda wins Silver - Thai floods may knock out Honda for 6 months - Trawler lands bag of cash off Iwate-ken -> Despite tsunami, nuclear power still much cheaper The Japan Atomic Energy Commission has released figures estimating that the cost of Japan's nuclear power has risen about 20% due to the Fukushima accident, and now costs consumers around JPY1.1kW/hr. This compares to the cost of coal-fueled power which is around JPY5.7kW/hr, and hydro which is around JPY11.9kW/hr. The JAEC went on to estimate that the likelihood of another Fukushima-style accident is once every 500 operating years. ***Ed: Of course, with more than 50 reactors, this means even the JAEC thinks there will be an accident every 10 years. We're certainly not impressed by those odds...** (Source: TT commentary from yomiuri.co.jp, Oct 26, 2011) http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/national/T111025005767.htm -> Baird Brewing back in the news Last year in TT-568 (http://www.japaninc.com/tt568_worlds-best-beer), we covered the fact that a small Shizuoka brew house called Baird Brewing, walked off with 3 gold medals in the World Beer Championships in Chicago. It has taken a year to get the Japanese mainstream press to pay attention, but finally it appears that Baird Brewing has "arrived", with the Nikkei covering a recent visit by them and three other brewers to the Japan Society in New York. Although there was no announcement of more gold medals, Baird apparently did share some facts about the small but growing craft brewing market in Japan, saying that there are 180 craft breweries which between them have just 1% of the overall Japanese beer market. ***Ed: They have some ways to go then, but at least they're getting recognized for their efforts.** (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Oct 28, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20111028D28HH577.htm -> Vacation Veranda wins Silver Another locally-based foreign entrepreneur who is winning medals is Teddy Jennings, who owns what is possibly the most unique business in Japan. Vacation Verandas "dresses up" dirty porches and verandas so that apartment dwellers can feel like they are living somewhere a bit nicer. Teddy's talent was confirmed this last week when one of his designs won Silver at the Hibiya Garden Show. Apparently he was the only foreign designer competing and he beat out many large garden and architectural firms in spite of this being the first year to compete. ***Ed: Vacation Veranda really is unique. See more on the photo gallery at Teddy's website.** (Source: TT commentary from vacationveranda.com, Oct 28, 2011) http://bit.ly/rFaPdK -> Thai floods may knock out Honda for 6 months The Nikkei is reporting that flood damage to the Honda Motor plants in Thailand may take up to 6 months to repair, thus reducing output by 100,000 units, or 3% of global production. Honda is apparently the only Japanese auto maker whose facility was directly damaged, although all makers are reporting problems and delays. The flooding is 2-3 meters deep in the area of the Honda factory park and will take another 2-3 weeks to recede so that damage can be assessed. (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Oct 30, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20111029D29JFF03.htm -> Trawler lands bag of cash off Iwate-ken A fishing boat trawling off the cost near Ofunato City in Iwate-ken has apparently hauled in more than it expected, when it landed a bag containing more than JPY11m in ten thousand yen bank notes. This is latest such cash catch reported by fishermen. Apparently home savings swept out to sea are showing up on a regular basis. The money has been turned in to the police, and if no one claims it within 6 months, it will become property of the finders. ***Ed: With more than 20,000 people dead or missing, there's a strong chance there will be no claimant.** (Source: TT commentary from ninemsn.com.au, Oct 30, 2011) http://bit.ly/uAnzpp NOTE: Broken links Many online news sources remove their articles after just a few days of posting them, thus breaking our links -- we apologize for the inconvenience. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CANDIDATE ROUND UP/VACANCIES => BiOS, a Division of the LINC Media group, is actively marketing the following positions for customers setting up or expanding in Japan, as well as other employers of bilinguals. ** HIGHLIGHTED POSITION BiOS is urgently looking for a Bilingual Desktop Engineer with experience to act as a single point of contact for any incidents and inquires regarding infrastructure and application support, at our client?s office in the Shinagawa area. The candidate will be responsible for end user support, service desk management, project management, and for managing both infrastructure and application issues by following ITIL principles. They will also be responsible for Data Center operation Support, including backing backup monitoring as well as a daily system check. Lastly, they will be responsible for conducting end user training on office IT products and environment. Due to the technical nature and demanding work environment, this position is suitable for someone with solid experience as a desktop or user support engineer for at least 3 years. In addition, since this role requires supporting end users in both English and Japanese, business-level communication skills in English and native-level communication skills in Japanese will be required. Remuneration is JPY5m ? JPY8m depending on your experience and skill level. ** POSITIONS VACANT - Asset Refresh Project Engr, global bank, JPY4M ? JPY4.5M - Service Delivery Manager, Japanese IT co, JPY9M ? JPY12M - Senior Netcare Engineer, BiOS, JPY4.5M ? JPY5.5M - Data Center Engineer, global ibank, JPY4M ? JPY4.5M - Bilingual Helpdesk Engineer, BiOS, JPY 3.5M ? JPY4M Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: tomohiro.kimura at biosjp.com ** BiOS Job Mail Every 2 weeks BiOS sends out a regular communication to its job seeking candidates, called BiOS Job Mail. Every edition carries a list of BiOS's current and most up-to-date vacancies, with each entry featuring a short job description and a direct link to the main entry on the BiOS home page. Regardless of whether you are unemployed and searching, thinking about a career change, or just curious to know if there is something out there that might suit you better, the BiOS Job Mail newsletter is an easy and convenient way for you to stay informed. If you would like to register for the BiOS Job Mail, or to find out more, please email kenji.sakota at biosjp.com. Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: tomohiro.kimura at biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ UPCOMING EVENTS/ANNOUNCEMENTS ---------------- Start a Company in Japan ----------------- Entrepreneur's Handbook Seminar 3rd of December, 2011 If you have been considering setting up your own company, find out what it takes to make it successful. Terrie Lloyd, founder of over 17 start-up companies in Japan, will be giving an English-language seminar and Q and A on starting up a company in Japan. This is an ideal opportunity to find out what is involved, and to ask specific questions that are not normally answered in business books. All materials are in English and are Japan-focused. For more details: http://www.japaninc.com/entrepreneur_handbook_seminar ----------------------------------------------------------- ------------------ ICA Event - November 17 ---------------- Speaker: Marc Wesseling Title: Japanese Social Media: Top Trends Details: Complete event details at http://www.icajapan.jp/ (RSVP Required) Date: Thursday, November 17, 2011 Time: 6:30 Doors open, Buffet Dinner included and cash bar Cost: 3,500 yen (members), 5,500 yen (non-members) Open to all venue is The Foreign Correspondents' Club of Japan http://www.fccj.or.jp/aboutus/map ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CORRECTIONS/FEEDBACK In this section we run comments and corrections submitted by readers. We encourage you to spot our mistakes and amplify our points, by email, to editors at terrie.com. *** In TT-635 we told the story of whistleblower Michael Woodford, who was fired from Olympus as its CEO after challenging the board to step down and take responsibility for 4 dubious M&A deals that cost the company hundreds of millions of dollars in excess fees. => Reader says: Michael Woodford has balls of steel, not only for taking on a high level of personal responsibility in taking on the CEO post (assuming he would have to understand the culture) but also for approaching the board directly about it despite placing his own position at risk. Good on him for making copies of the evidence. I hope he has good personal security arrangements in place... there are going to be some very angry individuals out there. *********************************************************** END SUBSCRIBERS: 8,359 members as of Oct 30, 2011 (We purge our list regularly.) +++ ABOUT US STAFF Written by: Terrie Lloyd (terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com) HELP: E-mail Terrie-request at mailman.japaninc.com with the word 'help' in the subject or body (don't include the quotes), and you will get back a message with instructions. FEEDBACK Send letters (Feedback, Inquiries & Information) to the editor to terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com. ADVERTISING INFORMATION For more information on advertising in this newsletter, Contact ads at japaninc.com. SUBSCRIBE Get Terrie's Take by giving your name and email address at http://www.japaninc.com/newsletters/free_sign_up, or go straight to Mailman at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ Copyright 2011 Japan Inc. Communications Inc. ----------------- Japan Inc opens up Japan ---------------- J at pan Inc is Japan's only independently published English- language business website. Authoritatively chronicling online the business trends in Japan, each posting brings you in-depth analysis of business, people and technology in the world's second largest economy. Visit www.japaninc.com for the best business insight on Japan available. ----------------------------------------------------------- -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From terrie at mailman.japaninc.com Mon Nov 7 08:46:45 2011 From: terrie at mailman.japaninc.com (Terrie's Take) Date: Mon, 7 Nov 2011 08:46:45 +0900 Subject: Terrie's Take 637 -- Olympus Redux & Corporate Governance, ebiz news from Japan Message-ID: * * * * * * * * * T E R R I E 'S T A K E * * * * * * * A weekly roundup of news & information from Terrie Lloyd. (http://www.terrie.com) General Edition Sunday, November 06, 2011, Issue No. 637 +++ INDEX - What's New -- Olympus Redux & Corporate Governance - News -- Flight of Capital - Candidate Roundup/Vacancies - Upcoming Events - Corrections/Feedback - News Credits SUBSCRIBE to, UNSUBSCRIBE from Terrie's Take at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take, or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ -------------- PBXL SUPPORTS SMALL BUSINESS --------------- MOVING TO A NEW OFFICE? DON'T BUY A PBX! At PBXL, we understand how expensive and time consuming it is to move into a new office, and we want to make sure that new businesses start off right. PBXL provides Cisco based scalable, high quality telephony and communications solutions. - Data center hosted, fully managed telephony solutions - Flexible to your business needs from 2 to 200 people - Avoid costly upfront purchases - Add phones as you grow Check out our website today at http://pbxl.jp e-mail us at info at pbxl.jp or call us at 03-4550-2557 ------------- PBXL is BUSINESS COMMUNICATIONS ------------- +++ WHAT'S NEW We continue to watch the Olympus debacle with interest. As you will recall, Olympus appointed Briton Michael Woodford to become its first foreign president, only to have him challenge the autocratic chairman Tsuyoshi Kikukawa and his entire board of directors over four dubious M&A transactions, including a US$2.2bn takeover of UK firm Gyrus, over the last 3-4 years. Woodford was subsequently fired for insubordination, a charge that looks to been made to stop further digging into the suspect M&As. Now the rumors circulating around town are that Olympus could have been the target of Yakuza extortion, and that the Yakuza are in fact that ultimate beneficiaries of the huge commissions paid by Olympus to the Cayman Islands advisory company which looked after the Gyrus deal. We first became aware of these rumors after reading a blog post by Jake Adelstein last week (http://bit.ly/qky8Jz), but chose not to repeat them because we feel one source isn't sufficient foundation for claims of this nature. However, some media entities are now freely talking about such a possibility, and we have since heard from another entirely separate source that specifically it is the Yamaguchi-gumi who are involved. The Olympus carryings on are certainly stimulating a lot of media speculation, and one wonders if the company can survive this crisis in its current form. A lot will depend on what the Tokyo Stock Exchange, the FSA, and other authorities decide to do about the situation. From all appearances, they want the problem to blow over or at least be resolved quietly. One can deduce this from their lack of forcefulness regarding the selection of an "independent" investigation panel by the company. The currently selected committee appear to be independent, but they were in fact chosen by two board members who have been involved with the Woodford firing -- so just how independent will it be? Corporate governance in Japan has been called into question over the Olympus affair, prompting even the Prime Minister, Yoshihiko Noda, to comment on the case. The perception amongst foreign investors in particular is that Japanese major companies are run as personal fiefdoms by powerful men who don't care about shareholders rights nor the trust given to them to lead a publicly run company. It's hard to disagree with this perception, especially in light of two more developing governance-related scandals, being a huge private loan to the founding family of Daio Paper and alleged underworld links in Europe and the Middle East by Japan Tobacco International (JTI). JTI overview is here: http://www.reportingproject.net/troubles_with_big_tobacco/ [Continued below...] -- NAGAMINE & MISHIMA - Securing Your Success in Japan --- Starting a new company in Japan? Looking to streamline your current operations? The team of bilingual experts at Nagamine & Mishima is able to provide high quality accounting, payroll and tax services that both exceed expectations and fit your budget. Our services help customers improve their operations and bottom line results. To find out more about our services and how we can help your business in Japan succeed, please visit our website www.nagamine-mishima.com or reach us directly by telephone at 03-3581-1975 or by email at info at nagamine-mishima.com. ---------- YOUR BOTTOM LINE IS OUR TOP PRIORITY------------ [...Article continues] But first, some observations about one puzzling point in the Olympus affair, courtesy of a reader: "Why is it that Michael Woodford was promoted to CEO with full powers just mere days before getting fired? What really went on? On May 11, Olympus announced that MW would be elected as a director at the 6/29 shareholders' meeting, and would be appointed as Rep. Dir. by the board. Normally the latter appointment would have been made at the board meeting that took place immediately after the AGM. In this case it was not, which is very strange. Instead, for almost three full months, even though MW supposedly was not actively investigating the transactions yet, the board delayed his appointment. [Point of speculation #1: was he already asking a few awkward questions here and there, causing the rest of the board angst? Most likely.] Then, on 9/23 he started more actively investigating, by sending a list of questions to Messrs. Kikukawa and Mori. Soon after that, on 9/29, he repeated his request to Kikukawa that he be appointed "CEO" -- by which, MW clearly meant Representative Director status. A single day later, Kikukawa appears to have done the nemawashi to tell his board how to vote and duly promoted MW. [Point of speculation #2: for what reason did Kikukawa agree to MW's promotion so quickly? Did he think that he could buy MW's loyalty? Or was the evidence too strong to ignore?] One rather suspects that: a) Kikukawa and the board thought MW would stop investigating if they gave him the Rep. Dir. role since any subsequent actions by MW would also implicate himself, and b) since the promotion was the first item on the agenda, when MW went on to yet again bring up the acquisitions at the end of the board meeting, there must have been some very angry people realizing that he couldn't be controlled. No doubt they told him to drop the subject and the board meeting just ended that way. As added spice to this mystery, there is the fact that as far as I [Ed: our reader] can ascertain, there was never any announcement in Japanese of MW's appointment as Rep. Dir. I am told that it was announced in English, but now the people who tell me they saw it cannot find any mention of the promotion -- so I can only imagine that it must have been taken down from Olympus' web site. The fact that they seem to have never disclosed it in Japanese is also pointed out here: http://kurarin2000.blogspot.com/2011/10/ceo.html Such non-disclosure may not be sufficient reason to put this company on supervision post, but at minimum, it shows the company's attitude towards disclosure in general, and it REALLY makes you wonder what happened on 9/29 and 9/30 -- or for that matter in the previous four years." [Back to us...] Yes, indeed, corporate governance in Olympus appears to be extremely soft and Kikukawa even though now gone appears to still be controlling the new CEO. Such is the nature of strong men. This idea of a driven and rather ruthless individual running a public company as if it was his own is quite common in highly competitive Japan, so it is with little surprise that another egregious case has surfaced -- that of Daio Paper. In this case, the grandson of the founder of Japan's third largest paper company, Ehime-based Daio Paper, is said to have received JPY10.7bn (US$141m) in unsecured loans from the company's subsidiaries between May 2010 and September 2011. Amazingly, while he was tapping the firm for such a large sum, the company itself reported a loss of JPY8.1bn for FY2010. Furthermore, the Daio directors, although they knew full well about the loans, agreed to let them happen and didn't divulge their existence to shareholders until forced to after a newspaper blew the whistle on the goings on. Daio is now being punished in the stock market and the President has announced that there will be an investigation and a possible law suit in the courts over the matter. But the damage is done, and Daio has been revealed for what it is: a publicly traded family-run company paying lip service its responsibility to shareholders. We won't go into the JTI case here, but with these three cases opening up in just 3 weeks, it's obvious that there is a deeply dysfunctional corporate governance problem in some major Japanese public companies. We think that it is about time that Japan takes corporate governance seriously. Perhaps Moody's or some other risk-related assessment company needs to create an index based on each firms' independence of outside board members and its historical track record of corporate governance. At very least, there needs to be some new regulation requiring listed companies to have at least a percentage of its directors be licenced after attending ethics, legal, and disclosure courses, run by a statutory or duly licenced commercial entity. As the nation undertakes significant M&As abroad, major firms can no longer hide from the demands of international rules and a persistent and investigative foreign media. ...The information janitors/ ***------------------------****-------------------------*** ------ Delta Air Lines - YOUR CONNECTION TO PARADISE ------ Introducing our new service from Fukuoka to Honolulu starting from December 28, 2011. Plan your next dream getaway and be rewarded. Earn 5,000 bonus miles when you fly round-trip on BusinessElite, or 2,500 bonus miles for round-trip Economy Class tickets. Register and travel before April 4, 2012 and be one of the first in Japan to enjoy our direct connection to this paradise island. This nonstop service is an addition to our expanding network in Japan to 9 U.S. gateways and onwards to over 250 U.S. cities. To qualify for this exclusive offer, visit delta.com, register today and travel through April 4, 2012. Please Note: All SkyMiles program rules apply to SkyMiles program membership, miles, offers, mile accrual, mile redemption and travel benefits. Offers, rules and benefits subject to change without notice. To review the rules, please visit Membership Guide & Program Rules. ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ NEWS - Flight of capital - Taiwanese tourists coming back to Japan - Biggest tourism fall is around Mt. Fuji - Public debt to exceed JPY1Q this fiscal year - Japantourist website launched -> Flight of capital Mark Schreiber over at the Japan TImes had an interesting column this week, with comments from the Shukan Bunshun about the flight of savings from Japanese wealthy individuals, who are concerned about Japan's financial future. Apparently a source at HSBC in Japan told the weekly magazine that from March through May, requests to open off-shore accounts by Japanese customers jumped 500%, and even today, 8 months later, such inquiries are running 300% over pre-January 2011 levels. ***Ed: Clearly the prospect of higher taxes and deterioration of social welfare payments is rattling the smart money -- as it should.**(Source: TT commentary from japantimes.co.jp, Nov 6, 2011) http://www.japantimes.co.jp/text/fd20111106bj.html -> Taiwanese tourists coming back to Japan While the overall Japanese tourism scene is still in a depressed state, some sectors are seeing a rebound, and one of these is that of Taiwanese tourists. In fact, more than 457,000 Taiwanese visited Japan between June and September this year, a 5.6% increase over the same period last year. Apparently they are coming without the need for significant discounting, and winter in Hokkaido looks to be one of the more popular destinations. ***Ed: Interestingly, Korean Tourism is saying that inbound traffic to Korea from Taiwan has dropped about 14% as Taiwanese switch back to Japan.** (Source: TT commentary from taiwannews.com, Nov 6, 2011) http://www.taiwannews.com.tw/etn/news_content.php?id=1750893 -> Biggest tourism fall is around Mt. Fuji According to the Japan Tourism Agency, the location with the highest fall off in tourists was Yamanashi-ken, home prefecture of Mt. Fuji. The area had a 91% drop off in foreign tourists, plummeting from 219,270 to just 19,730 guests staying at hotels in the area. This was even greater than the 87.9% drop for Fukushima and 89.7% for Iwate. ***Ed: This anomaly can probably be explained by the fact that both Fukushima and Iwate benefited from a lot of foreign volunteers pitching in on the relief efforts.** (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Nov 5, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20111105D05JF292.htm -> Public debt to exceed JPY1Q this fiscal year A historical number will soon have been reached, with Japanese public debt due to exceed JPY1Q (one quadrillion = 1,000,000,000,000,000) by March next year. Originally the government proposed to increase national debt by JPY71trn, to a total of JPY995.92trn in 2011, but the Tsunami and Fukushima crises have pushed that number up by another 11.5trn and FX intervention by an additional JPY15trn. ***Ed: This is a lot of zeros, and equals debt of about JPY7.9m per man, woman, and child alive today. A perfect storm in the making?** (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Nov 5, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20111105D0411A18.htm -> Japantourist website launched Our sister company, Metropolis magazine, has launched an inbound tourism website at www.japantourist.jp. The website caters to foreigners abroad or resident in one of the major cities, who want to explore Japan in more detail. The website uses partners and contributors to build its database, so it is still a work in progress, but already it is the fastest growing English-language tourism website in Japan and by mid-next year should be the largest. Key differentiators for japantourist.jp are: i) regional partners, ensuring less well known areas are covered, ii) rewards for contributors, increasing input volume and quality, iii) national coverage, essential for major advertisers, iv) user recommendations, not unique but within Japan in English, a first, and v) syndication strategy ensuring wide dissemination around the internet. (Source: Metropolis' own press announcement, Nov 5, 2011) NOTE: Broken links Many online news sources remove their articles after just a few days of posting them, thus breaking our links -- we apologize for the inconvenience. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CANDIDATE ROUND UP/VACANCIES => BiOS, a Division of the LINC Media group, is actively marketing the following positions for customers setting up or expanding in Japan, as well as other employers of bilinguals. ** HIGHLIGHTED POSITION BiOS is urgently looking for a Bilingual Desktop Engineer with experience to act as a single point of contact for any incidents and inquires regarding infrastructure and application support, at our client?s office in the Shinagawa area. The candidate will be responsible for end user support, service desk management, project management, and for managing both infrastructure and application issues by following ITIL principles. They will also be responsible for Data Center operation Support, including backing backup monitoring as well as a daily system check. Lastly, they will be responsible for conducting end user training on office IT products and environment. Due to the technical nature and demanding work environment, this position is suitable for someone with solid experience as a desktop or user support engineer for at least 3 years. In addition, since this role requires supporting end users in both English and Japanese, business-level communication skills in English and native-level communication skills in Japanese will be required. Remuneration is JPY5m ? JPY8m depending on your experience and skill level. ** POSITIONS VACANT - Asset Refresh Project Engr, bank, JPY4M ? JPY4.5M - Service Delivery Mgr, Japanese IT co, JPY9M ? JPY12M - Senior Netcare Engineer, BiOS, JPY4.5M ? JPY5.5M - Data Center Engineer, global ibank, JPY4M ? JPY4.5M - Bilingual Helpdesk Engineer, BiOS, JPY 3.5M ? JPY4M Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: tomohiro.kimura at biosjp.com ** BiOS Job Mail Every 2 weeks BiOS sends out a regular communication to its job seeking candidates, called BiOS Job Mail. Every edition carries a list of BiOS's current and most up-to-date vacancies, with each entry featuring a short job description and a direct link to the main entry on the BiOS home page. Regardless of whether you are unemployed and searching, thinking about a career change, or just curious to know if there is something out there that might suit you better, the BiOS Job Mail newsletter is an easy and convenient way for you to stay informed. If you would like to register for the BiOS Job Mail, or to find out more, please email kenji.sakota at biosjp.com. Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: tomohiro.kimura at biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- --------- BIOS - Bilingual IT Systems and Support --------- BiOS full-service IT solutions has a new service. Now the largest independently owned bilingual IT support company in Tokyo, BiOS offers some of the most competitive services available to multinationals whether large or small. Data Center staff and managed services, Help Desk, desktop, and network support. Server virtualization, cloud computing hosting and solutions, general software development. For more information on these and other SI and IT services, in English or Japanese: Phone: (03) 4588-2220, Email: solutions at biosjp.com Web: www.biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ UPCOMING EVENTS/ANNOUNCEMENTS ---------------- Start a Company in Japan ----------------- Entrepreneur's Handbook Seminar 3rd of December, 2011 If you have been considering setting up your own company, find out what it takes to make it successful. Terrie Lloyd, founder of over 17 start-up companies in Japan, will be giving an English-language seminar and Q and A on starting up a company in Japan. This is an ideal opportunity to find out what is involved, and to ask specific questions that are not normally answered in business books. All materials are in English and are Japan-focused. For more details: http://www.japaninc.com/entrepreneur_handbook_seminar ----------------------------------------------------------- ------------------ ICA Event - November 17 ---------------- Speaker: Marc Wesseling Title: Japanese Social Media: Top Trends Details: Complete event details at http://www.icajapan.jp/ (RSVP Required) Date: Thursday, November 17, 2011 Time: 6:30 Doors open, Buffet Dinner included and cash bar Cost: 3,500 yen (members), 5,500 yen (non-members) Open to all venue is The Foreign Correspondents' Club of Japan http://www.fccj.or.jp/aboutus/map ----------------------------------------------------------- ----------------- Director Training Course ---------------- In early December, the nonprofit Board Director Training Institute of Japan will offer its first two-day ?director training? course, covering not only legal and corporate governance topics but also the leading edge of management subjects that responsible directors need to understand: risk management, interpreting financial statements, strategy, M&A etc. The course will be in Japanese, and has a first-rate lineup of lecturers from leading business/law schools and institutions such as Deloitte, Monitor Group, White & Case, and GCA. Let your friends - or companies you invest in - know that they can apply to this "first-of-its-kind" course at: info at bdti.or.jp! ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CORRECTIONS/FEEDBACK In this section we run comments and corrections submitted by readers. We encourage you to spot our mistakes and amplify our points, by email, to editors at terrie.com. *** No comments this week. *********************************************************** END SUBSCRIBERS: 8,349 members as of Nov 06, 2011 (We purge our list regularly.) +++ ABOUT US STAFF Written by: Terrie Lloyd (terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com) HELP: E-mail Terrie-request at mailman.japaninc.com with the word 'help' in the subject or body (don't include the quotes), and you will get back a message with instructions. FEEDBACK Send letters (Feedback, Inquiries & Information) to the editor to terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com. ADVERTISING INFORMATION For more information on advertising in this newsletter, Contact ads at japaninc.com. SUBSCRIBE Get Terrie's Take by giving your name and email address at http://www.japaninc.com/newsletters/free_sign_up, or go straight to Mailman at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ Copyright 2011 Japan Inc. Communications Inc. ----------------- Japan Inc opens up Japan ---------------- J at pan Inc is Japan's only independently published English- language business website. Authoritatively chronicling online the business trends in Japan, each posting brings you in-depth analysis of business, people and technology in the world's second largest economy. Visit www.japaninc.com for the best business insight on Japan available. ----------------------------------------------------------- -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/attachments/20111107/6e9776bf/attachment.html From terrie at mailman.japaninc.com Mon Nov 14 08:30:09 2011 From: terrie at mailman.japaninc.com (Terrie's Take) Date: Mon, 14 Nov 2011 08:30:09 +0900 Subject: Terrie's Take 638 -- Olympus - What Happens Next? ebiz news from Japan Message-ID: * * * * * * * * * T E R R I E 'S T A K E * * * * * * * A weekly roundup of news & information from Terrie Lloyd. (http://www.terrie.com) General Edition Sunday, November 13, 2011, Issue No. 638 +++ INDEX - What's New -- Olympus -- What Happens Next? - News -- Geiger counters made in Fukushima - Candidate Roundup/Vacancies - Upcoming Events - Corrections/Feedback -- Correct price of nuclear power in Japan - News Credits SUBSCRIBE to, UNSUBSCRIBE from Terrie's Take at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take, or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ -------------- PBXL SUPPORTS SMALL BUSINESS --------------- MOVING TO A NEW OFFICE? DON'T BUY A PBX! At PBXL, we understand how expensive and time consuming it is to move into a new office, and we want to make sure that new businesses start off right. PBXL provides Cisco based scalable, high quality telephony and communications solutions. - Data center hosted, fully managed telephony solutions - Flexible to your business needs from 2 to 200 people - Avoid costly upfront purchases - Add phones as you grow Check out our website today at http://pbxl.jp e-mail us at info at pbxl.jp or call us at 03-4550-2557 ------------- PBXL is BUSINESS COMMUNICATIONS ------------- +++ WHAT'S NEW Normally we don't comment on the same topic in quick succession, the last time being the earthquake. But given what is happening to Olympus and the ripples this incident is casting on the corporate reputation of Japan, in a way Olympus is the magnitude 9 earthquake of the commercial world. Today, we speculate on what will happen to Olympus over the coming weeks and months. It's been interesting following the media coverage of Olympus, because on one hand you've got the Western media deciding that a felony has been committed and that it is only a matter of time before Kikukawa and the other senior management for the last decade get their's. Then you have the Japanese press saying oh so carefully that maybe what Kikukawa and the others did was to protect unfortunate losses of a previous administration and so maybe they were in a sense honorable men trying to keep the a leaky ship afloat. Certainly it appeared for a few days last week that the legal and regulatory bodies in Japan might not take action and instead sit back and let the new (old) management in Olympus ride the storm out. If this had been the case, there would have been only a superficial investigation, and at worst, Kikukawa and several others would have to fall on their swords in an honorable way. And in fact this might still happen. [Continued below...] -- NAGAMINE & MISHIMA - Securing Your Success in Japan --- Starting a new company in Japan? Looking to streamline your current operations? The team of bilingual experts at Nagamine & Mishima is able to provide high quality accounting, payroll and tax services that both exceed expectations and fit your budget. Our services help customers improve their operations and bottom line results. To find out more about our services and how we can help your business in Japan succeed, please visit our website www.nagamine-mishima.com or reach us directly by telephone at 03-3581-1975 or by email at info at nagamine-mishima.com. ---------- YOUR BOTTOM LINE IS OUR TOP PRIORITY------------ [...Article continues] However, the powers that be have decided to act, and since no one wants to be seen to be left out, the Tokyo District Public Prosecutors Office, the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department and the Securities and Exchange Surveillance Commission have all decided to pile in and investigate possible fraud. It would be interesting to know who gave the green light for them to suddenly move. Our take, for the record, is that this is a massive case of investor fraud, of the "window dressing" variety -- similar to the misdeeds of Seibu's Tsutsumi, who received a 3-year suspended sentence, and Livedoor's Takafumi Horie, who received a 3-year prison stretch. The only difference is that this case is about 1,000 times bigger -- so will that earn Kikukawa a 3,000-year prison sentence? Unlikely. We think he will do the same time as Tsutsumi: i.e., a suspended sentence. All he has to do is to hold his tongue, as Horie was unable to do. He will probably be held in detention for a while though. But before Kikukawa gets dragged away by the police, another interesting event will happen, and probably is happening already -- that of risk-oriented investment funds jumping in to buy Olympus shares at rock bottom prices. Corporate Japan and large pension funds love to invest in bedrock companies like Olympus. However, any time such a company is tainted by scandal they drop its shares like a hot potato, without any consideration as to whether there will be residual value after the storm is over. So it was that Olympus shares were "limit down" for several days and continued to lose value even on Friday. This rather predictable behavior by big domestic shareholders is something that contrarian (largely foreign) investors love and can be a huge source of profits. A recent example of a similar case would be LiveDoor in 2006. In the month or so after Horie was taken into custody until the company was actually delisted, its shares dropped a massive 98%. Despite the huge pending lawsuits, alleged underground related companies, and other risks, the opportunity was too good to pass up, and foreign funds bought almost 60% of Livedoor's outstanding shares. Then, once the company was delisted, they set about cleansing the company of senior managers and illicit assets, settling law suits, and reconditioning the remaining assets. In the end, they salvaged almost a billion dollars on an investment of 15% of that amount. Not a bad return, although stressful for those involved at the front line. Now, Livedoor was an Internet company with assets of uncertain value and not much other substance. Olympus on the other hand has manufacturing, patents, 34,000 employees, and a global sales/service network. Since the Olympus management are calling in the auditors to redo the financials for the last five years, and possibly for the last ten, we cannot calculate what the actual value of the company is. But the smart money out there is thinking that it's something north of JPY124bn. We say that because the selling stopped at JPY440 per share and bounced back up to JPY460 on Friday. We think that a delisting of Olympus is highly likely, since it is hard to see the auditors being able to work back through at least five years of financials and have them ready before the TSE deadline of December 14th. Therefore, once the investment funds have control, which will occur when 4-5 of them have sufficient stakes to push changes at management level, they will require a change at the head of the company and resignation of the board in its entirety. At that point, a lot will depend on the government and its stance over a possible foreign takeover. If PM Noda, in an effort to show that Japan is worthy of involvement in TPP, decides to take a back seat, then the investment funds will logically invite Michael Woodford back in to run the business, but they will probably look to keep him on a short leash, giving him with a lucrative mandate to bridge the corporation to an M&A, rather than to continue running the business long-term -- incompatible management styles and all that. At the same time as Woodford comes in, the funds will put a Japanese senior person in at a COO level, and this person will wind up running the business after it is sold off. As far as the sale of assets is concerned, probably the company will be broken up. Acquisitions like Gyrus will be put back out on the block early, so as to pay down some of the massive debts the company now has, while the core businesses will be split up. Cameras will get sold off, but the endoscope business will be held back since this is the jewel in the crown and makes JPY69.3bn of operating profit annually. That business will be either refloated or held until global economic conditions fetch a much higher price. Now, we mentioned the Japanese government. They may not take kindly to "vulture funds" tearing apart a bedrock company, especially one that supplies the medical sector. Therefore, they will either set some operating requirements for any funds owning the business, OR, they will step in and direct that the funds only sell to another Japanese firm -- someone such as Terumo or Matsushita. ...The information janitors/ ***------------------------****-------------------------*** ------ Delta Air Lines - YOUR CONNECTION TO PARADISE ------ Introducing our new service from Fukuoka to Honolulu starting from December 28, 2011. Plan your next dream getaway and be rewarded. Earn 5,000 bonus miles when you fly round-trip on BusinessElite, or 2,500 bonus miles for round-trip Economy Class tickets. Register and travel before April 4, 2012 and be one of the first in Japan to enjoy our direct connection to this paradise island. This nonstop service is an addition to our expanding network in Japan to 9 U.S. gateways and onwards to over 250 U.S. cities. To qualify for this exclusive offer, visit delta.com, register today and travel through April 4, 2012. Please Note: All SkyMiles program rules apply to SkyMiles program membership, miles, offers, mile accrual, mile redemption and travel benefits. Offers, rules and benefits subject to change without notice. To review the rules, please visit Membership Guide & Program Rules. ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ NEWS - Geiger counters made in Fukushima - Japan becomes largest market for Viet plastics - September current account surplus slumps 21.4% - Believe it or not, Japan No. 1 as tourism brand - Japan commits to participating in TPP -> Geiger counters made in Fukushima A company called Sanwa is making low-cost, high quality personal Geiger counters in Fukushima. The company is actually based in Fukushima, and the President was fed up with seeing people around him worried about radiation and not being able to trust government radiation surveys. The new Geiger counters costs just JPY18,800 and will measure 0.04uSv/hr to 440uSv/hr. The comapny is also working on producing its own Geiger-Muller tubes, so that it can bring the pricing and device sizes down even further. (Source: TT commentary from mainichi.jp, Nov 7, 2011) http://mdn.mainichi.jp/mdnnews/news/20111107p2a00m0na020000c.html -> Japan becomes largest market for Viet plastics Reinforcing the fact that Vietnam and Japan have close relations, the Vietnamese Ministry of Industry and Trade reported that the nation's plastics exports for the first 10 months of 2011 to Japan reached US$1.1bn, a 31% increase over the same period in 2010. October shipments surged almost 35% ahead of the same period last year. ***Ed: We will see an increasing shift to Vietnam from manufacturing in China, as Japanese companies seek to diversify and also to reduce costs now that Chinese coastal wages are climbing. Still, US$1bn is just 10% of the value of plastics shipped from China to Japan in 2009, indicating this is still an emerging trend.** (Source: Vietnam News at google.com, Nov 12, 2011) http://bit.ly/s5Vt3d -> September current account surplus slumps 21.4% One of the reasons the Japanese yen is seen as a haven currency in the FX markets is because Japan runs an ongoing current account surplus and therefore is theoretically able to trade its way out of its public debt hole. However, this happy state of affairs may soon come to an end, as Japan's current account surplus continues to tumble. The Ministry of Finance says that the surplus in September fell 21.4% from JPY2trn in 2010 to JPY1.5trn. ***Ed: Nonetheless, the drop was less than forecast, especially after a miserable 64.3% drop in August y-o-y, and so the markets perked up at the news.** (Source: TT commentary from reuters.com, Nov 8, 2011) http://reut.rs/tnMsic -> Believe it or not, Japan No. 1 as tourism brand FutureBrand calls it the "paradox of bad news" as it explains the results of its 2011 - 2012 Country Brand Index (CBI). The company says that as a country brand globally, Japan has strengthened its standing to no. 4, behind Canada, Switzerland, and New Zealand. What is completely surprising, though, is that Japan came out top as a preferred tourist destination amongst the focus groups tested. ***Ed: This should perk up the JTA and the travel industry in general -- indeed, 2012 could be a strong year for travel to Japan if this study is any indication.** (Source: TT commentary from futurebrand's website, Nov 8, 2011) http://www.campaignbrief.com/2011/11/futurebrand-releases-results-o.html -> Japan commits to participating in TPP In a move that may spell the end of his short spell as PM, or will in time be seen as a brilliant counterstrike against China that secured him a much longer term, PM Yoshihiko Noda has taken the step of committing Japan to the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) talks. TPP will require Japan to open up its agricultural and other markets, and is creating a huge backlash by conservatives. ***Ed: Personally, we think TPP will be a huge tonic for Japan. While it will certainly damage the nation's food self-sufficiency and upturn a number of commercial sectors, it will force change on the nation and speed up the realignment of power from 6m farmers and 1m doctors, to the public majority. Nothing like a bit of "Gaiatsu" to bring about changes that domestic politics is unable to achieve... :-)** (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Nov 12, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/fr/tnks/Nni20111111D1111A08.htm NOTE: Broken links Many online news sources remove their articles after just a few days of posting them, thus breaking our links -- we apologize for the inconvenience. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CANDIDATE ROUND UP/VACANCIES => BiOS, a Division of the LINC Media group, is actively marketing the following positions for customers setting up or expanding in Japan, as well as other employers of bilinguals. ** HIGHLIGHTED POSITION BiOS is urgently looking for a Data Center Engineer for a global financial institution in the Tokyo and Yokohama area, preferably with experience in Data Center infrastructure and support operations. The candidate will be responsible for hands-on hardware trouble-shooting (IBM/HP), hardware break/fix, and install, setup, and configuration of IT networks. You will also be responsible for coordinating with local vendors, as well as documenting workflow and occasionally interacting with clients. Due to the technical nature and demanding work environment, this position is suitable for someone with solid experience as a data center engineer with troubleshooting skills of HP, IBM, and Sun Micro servers for at least two years. In addition, since this role requires coordination with both English and Japanese speakers, business-level communication skills in English and Japanese will be required. Remuneration is JPY4m ? JPY5m depending on your experience and skill level. ** POSITIONS VACANT - Helpdesk Support Engr, global telco, JPY3.5 ? JPY4M - Account Manager (Biz Dev), BiOS, JPY3.5 ? JPY4.5M - Bilingual Field Engr, global IT services co., JPY6 ? 8.5M - Network Support Engr, global electronics co, JPY4 ? 5M - Bilingual Helpdesk Engineer, BiOS, JPY3.5 ? JPY4M Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: tomohiro.kimura at biosjp.com ** BiOS Job Mail Every 2 weeks BiOS sends out a regular communication to its job seeking candidates, called BiOS Job Mail. Every edition carries a list of BiOS's current and most up-to-date vacancies, with each entry featuring a short job description and a direct link to the main entry on the BiOS home page. Regardless of whether you are unemployed and searching, thinking about a career change, or just curious to know if there is something out there that might suit you better, the BiOS Job Mail newsletter is an easy and convenient way for you to stay informed. If you would like to register for the BiOS Job Mail, or to find out more, please email kenji.sakota at biosjp.com. Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: tomohiro.kimura at biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- --------- BIOS - Bilingual IT Systems and Support --------- BiOS full-service IT solutions has a new service. Now the largest independently owned bilingual IT support company in Tokyo, BiOS offers some of the most competitive services available to multinationals whether large or small. Data Center staff and managed services, Help Desk, desktop, and network support. Server virtualization, cloud computing hosting and solutions, general software development. For more information on these and other SI and IT services, in English or Japanese: Phone: (03) 4588-2220, Email: solutions at biosjp.com Web: www.biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ UPCOMING EVENTS/ANNOUNCEMENTS ---------------- Start a Company in Japan ----------------- Entrepreneur's Handbook Seminar 3rd of December, 2011 If you have been considering setting up your own company, find out what it takes to make it successful. Terrie Lloyd, founder of over 17 start-up companies in Japan, will be giving an English-language seminar and Q and A on starting up a company in Japan. This is an ideal opportunity to find out what is involved, and to ask specific questions that are not normally answered in business books. All materials are in English and are Japan-focused. For more details: http://www.japaninc.com/entrepreneur_handbook_seminar ----------------------------------------------------------- ------------------ ICA Event - November 17 ---------------- Speaker: Marc Wesseling Title: Japanese Social Media: Top Trends Details: Complete event details at http://www.icajapan.jp/ (RSVP Required) Date: Thursday, November 17, 2011 Time: 6:30 Doors open, Buffet Dinner included and cash bar Cost: 3,500 yen (members), 5,500 yen (non-members) Open to all venue is The Foreign Correspondents' Club of Japan http://www.fccj.or.jp/aboutus/map ----------------------------------------------------------- ----------------- Director Training Course ---------------- In early December, the nonprofit Board Director Training Institute of Japan will offer its first two-day ?director training? course, covering not only legal and corporate governance topics but also the leading edge of management subjects that responsible directors need to understand: risk management, interpreting financial statements, strategy, M&A etc. The course will be in Japanese, and has a first-rate lineup of lecturers from leading business/law schools and institutions such as Deloitte, Monitor Group, White & Case, and GCA. Let your friends - or companies you invest in - know that they can apply to this "first-of-its-kind" course at: info at bdti.or.jp! ----------------------------------------------------------- --------- Global Entrepreneurship Week (GEW) Event -------- Moneyball Japan Innovation and entrepreneurial spirit apply equally to both sports and business. Inspired by this, we invite professional baseball agent and legend, Don Nomura, to discuss playing ?Moneyball? in both the diamond and business. Event details (*There is no charge*) Date Friday November 18, 2011 Time 1730 to 1830 Place National Graduate Research Institute for Policy Studies (GRIPS) (near Roppongi Midtown) Register by email here: http://bit.ly/tXzsfG More details here: http://bit.ly/vwjShv ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CORRECTIONS/FEEDBACK In this section we run comments and corrections submitted by readers. We encourage you to spot our mistakes and amplify our points, by email, to editors at terrie.com. *** In TT-636 we reported that the Japan Atomic Energy Commission has released figures estimating that the cost of Japan's nuclear power has risen about 20% due to the Fukushima accident, and now costs consumers around JPY1.1kW/hr. This was a mistake by us as a reader points out. => Our reader comments: That estimated cost figure seemed way too low (even for the AEC, which has a record of providing low figures for the costs of nuclear power.) So I went to your source (the Yomiuri), and to be fair to the AEC, found that what it announced is that it has calculated the costs needed to prepare for future major accidents at nuclear power plants as JPY1.1 per kWh, a sum which they claim is about 20% of the cost of generating nuclear power under the current system. The AEC's estimates of the cost of generating nuclear energy in Japan (about 5JPY/kWh) are still less than half what some independent academic experts say it is (about 12 JPY/kWh). But even using the AEC's own numbers, this announcement is interesting as it acknowledges for the first time that nuclear accidents can happen (previous calculations have been based on the assumption that they could not) and creates a means for those costs to be factored in. *********************************************************** END SUBSCRIBERS: 8,345 members as of Nov 13, 2011 (We purge our list regularly.) +++ ABOUT US STAFF Written by: Terrie Lloyd (terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com) HELP: E-mail Terrie-request at mailman.japaninc.com with the word 'help' in the subject or body (don't include the quotes), and you will get back a message with instructions. FEEDBACK Send letters (Feedback, Inquiries & Information) to the editor to terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com. ADVERTISING INFORMATION For more information on advertising in this newsletter, Contact ads at japaninc.com. SUBSCRIBE Get Terrie's Take by giving your name and email address at http://www.japaninc.com/newsletters/free_sign_up, or go straight to Mailman at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ Copyright 2011 Japan Inc. Communications Inc. ----------------- Japan Inc opens up Japan ---------------- J at pan Inc is Japan's only independently published English- language business website. Authoritatively chronicling online the business trends in Japan, each posting brings you in-depth analysis of business, people and technology in the world's second largest economy. Visit www.japaninc.com for the best business insight on Japan available. ----------------------------------------------------------- -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/attachments/20111114/3db20c08/attachment.html From terrie at mailman.japaninc.com Mon Nov 21 08:37:41 2011 From: terrie at mailman.japaninc.com (Terrie's Take) Date: Mon, 21 Nov 2011 08:37:41 +0900 Subject: Terrie's Take 639 -- 10,000 Tickets, a Good Idea or Not? e-biz news from Japan Message-ID: * * * * * * * * * T E R R I E 'S T A K E * * * * * * * A weekly roundup of news & information from Terrie Lloyd. (http://www.terrie.com) General Edition Sunday, November 20, 2011, Issue No. 639 +++ INDEX - What's New -- 10,000 Tickets, a Good Idea or Not? - News -- Interesting data about high net worth individuals - Candidate Roundup/Vacancies - Upcoming Events - Corrections/Feedback - News Credits SUBSCRIBE to, UNSUBSCRIBE from Terrie's Take at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take, or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ ----------- PBXL TOTAL TELEPHONY SOLUTION (TTS) ----------- PAYING TOO MUCH FOR MONTHLY CALLING CHARGES? PBXL?s Total Telephony Solution is the answer for unlimited domestic and international calling. With PBXL cloud telephony and TTS, enjoy a fully managed solution with zero variable costs. No office is too big or too small to save money. - Unlimited calling within Japan and 23 countries - Flat-rate calling charges based on number of phones - PBXL will review your current bills and save you money Check out our website today at http://en.pbxl.jp e-mail us at info at pbxl.jp or call us at 03-4550-2557 ------------ PBXL is BUSINESS COMMUNICATIONS -------------- +++ WHAT'S NEW When we first heard about the ten thousand free flights being offered to bloggers by the Japan Tourism Agency (JTA) to come to Japan, we were a bit incredulous. This has been an agency that until now has had to work with minimal budgets and manpower. So for them to lay out JPY1.1bn for tickets and to provide the manpower and logistics required to execute this campaign was quite a surprise. Actually, though, the announcement is still just a trial balloon, because the JTA has yet to get budget allocation from the Diet, and we won't know until March 2012 whether it will pass muster or not. However, we presume that it will -- because everyone knows that Japan's tourism industry is in the pits at present and needs urgent CPR. It didn't take long for the news to get out on the wires and the blogosphere, and for people to get quite excited about the opportunity to win a free round trip to Japan. Indeed, since the announcement there have been over 100 million searches on Google for terms relating to free tickets to Japan. Hundreds of news agencies and publications have picked up the story, and as a trial balloon we'd have to say that it has been a huge success. Even if the budget approval doesn't happen next March, the attention that the JTA has won for Japan with this story will be invaluable. Obviously many "entrepreneurial" types have sensed an opportunity in the promotion. We don't know the details, but the JNTO had to run an announcement on their website last month, warning visitors that "There have been reports in some countries about acts of fraud related to this media report. The Japanese government has not committed to provide free flight tickets to Japan to anybody. Please be careful not to get caught up in this kind of fraud." [Continued below...] -- NAGAMINE & MISHIMA - Securing Your Success in Japan --- Starting a new company in Japan? Looking to streamline your current operations? The team of bilingual experts at Nagamine & Mishima is able to provide high quality accounting, payroll and tax services that both exceed expectations and fit your budget. Our services help customers improve their operations and bottom line results. To find out more about our services and how we can help your business in Japan succeed, please visit our website www.nagamine-mishima.com or reach us directly by telephone at 03-3581-1975 or by email at info at nagamine-mishima.com. ---------- YOUR BOTTOM LINE IS OUR TOP PRIORITY------------ [...Article continues] That brings up the question of just how the JTA is going to conduct this campaign because dealing with potentially millions of applicants will present some real challenges. They haven't disclosed much about the program yet, other than that there will be a special site set up for applications, and that they are interested in bloggers who are influential. Our first question is how they are going to qualify applicants? We understand that the basic idea is to focus on Facebook and Twitter users. If that's the case, we wonder if they have heard of "Klout" scoring? This will at least let them take a semi-scientific approach to evaluating each applicant. We ask this because high rankings on Twitter or Facebook are not necessarily desirable. As a simple example, think of the scantily clad hopeful models on Facebook who are each maxed out at 4,800 Friends in their efforts to gain attention. Are they there because of their persuasion skills? Hardly. Something more basic got them there. Well, OK, maybe if they are wearing a skimpy beach outfit while down in Okinawa, we suppose they might draw some relevant interest... How the JTA chooses people is also important because doing a poor job at an early stage will discourage interest from millions of hopeful applicants, or worse, it could cause a negative backlash against perceived unfairness. Instead of just relying on Facebook and Twitter numbers or even Klout scores, the JTA would be much better served by creating a website that lets produce material on a pre-trip basis and have others vote/"like" entries -- thus creating a level playing field. Another question is: how does one get 10,000 people to blog/post/tweet nicely? With a number that big, there are bound to be some influential bloggers having bad experiences when they come through -- especially if they get to thinking they are celebrities, when in fact local hospitality workers won't be aware of this nor care less about it. You WILL eat fish every morning for breakfast... Actually, when you get down to it, how does one enforce the ticket winners to blog at all? After all, the JTA can't threaten "no postings, no flight back home". Will they put them in jail or fine them? Related to this is just what is sufficient volume for a post, tweet, or blog? Are a few sentences and photos sufficient work to earn a JPY100,000 airfare? Who adjudicates this? Who counts and evaluates each contribution? This sounds like a huge job unless the JTA is going to automate the process. We hope the JTA comes up with some good answers to these and other concerns, so that the campaign is seen as accessible to everyone and not for just an elite few. No one denies that inbound tourism needs a huge kick start. Common wisdom has it that tourism is down by the 40% or so because of three factors: the high yen, language issues, and Fukushima. There can be no doubt that Fukushima has been a major disruptor of normal tourism patterns, and the main beneficiary of the disaster has been South Korea, which at one point last week indirectly attributed 14% of its increased tourist numbers to the Fukushima situation. We all hope Fukushima will be largely resolved by year-end and that tourists will start responding to the media messages about cold shut-down. What about the high yen and language issues? Actually, the South Korean tourism industry is a good reference point for Japan's performance, and shows that neither the yen appreciation nor language have been particularly strong tourism deterrents over the last three years. Since 2008, we should have seen tourism numbers drop as the yen appreciated. Instead, there was no noticeable drop and inbound numbers stayed flat. Over the same period, and yes, admittedly the Won is cheaper, Korea's tourist numbers have climbed substantially. Why is it that pre-March/11, when Japan has far more historic places of interest, places to go, and pop culture assets, that South Korea, also a non-English speaking country, had more tourists? We think the main reason is much more simple: Japan has insufficient marketing and a tourism industry that hasn't embraced foreign tourists. We suppose this is understandable, when domestic tourists outnumber foreign ones 10 to 1, but it needs to change. Discount airlines are creating the channels through which hordes of foreign tourists are supposed to come in through, so it's time for a coordinated high-level effort to lift the quality of Japan's tourism infrastructure. In particular, it would be good if the local hotels could put something else out for breakfast besides cornflakes and fish... :-) So in this context, we wholly support the 10,000 free flights to Japan by the JTA. We think the promotion is a bit risky if it is not managed properly, but at least it will kick off a much higher awareness within Japan itself of the value of foreign tourists. Lastly, readers will have noticed in our newsletter last week that sister company Metropolis has launched a new nationwide travel portal called www.japantourist.jp. Given the 10,000 free tickets campaign, our launch was good timing. Can you please show your support by going to JapanTourist.jp and checking it out? Specifically, if you approve of our efforts, please click the Facebook "Like" button at the top right of the top page -- we want our Klout score to get up there as well! ...The information janitors/ ***------------------------****-------------------------*** ------ Delta Air Lines - YOUR CONNECTION TO PARADISE ------ Introducing our new service from Fukuoka to Honolulu starting from December 28, 2011. Plan your next dream getaway and be rewarded. Earn 5,000 bonus miles when you fly round-trip on BusinessElite, or 2,500 bonus miles for round-trip Economy Class tickets. Register and travel before April 4, 2012 and be one of the first in Japan to enjoy our direct connection to this paradise island. This nonstop service is an addition to our expanding network in Japan to 9 U.S. gateways and onwards to over 250 U.S. cities. To qualify for this exclusive offer, visit delta.com, register today and travel through April 4, 2012. Please Note: All SkyMiles program rules apply to SkyMiles program membership, miles, offers, mile accrual, mile redemption and travel benefits. Offers, rules and benefits subject to change without notice. To review the rules, please visit Membership Guide & Program Rules. ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ NEWS - Over 40's feel most burden of medical expenses - Farmed fish to make up 50% of fish sold next year - International tax collaboration nets extra JPY85bn - India-based Lupin snaps up J pharma company - Interesting data about high net worth individuals -> Over 40's feel most burden of medical expenses A July survey conducted by the National Federation of Health Insurance Societies has found that 61% of workers in their 40's find their health insurance premiums too high, followed by 39.4% and 39% for people in their 60's and 50's respectively. This is perhaps surprising, given that workers still receive government subsidization of 70% of their medical bills (the subsidy rises to 90% for people in their 70's). ***Ed: Japan's working population should know that they have a pretty good deal compared to other countries, in terms of health care costs -- a 30% contribution is not a lot to pay if the costs for operations and other procedures are already lower than most other first-world countries.** (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Nov 19, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20111119D1811A10.htm -> Farmed fish to make up 50% of fish sold next year The Food and Agriculture Organization in the United Nations has said that more than 50% of fish sold globally will come from acquaculture farms from next year. Apparently farmed product came to 57.2m tones in 2010, accounting for 48% of total seafood production. The 50% mark is expected to be passed in 2012. China is the top acquaculture producer, supplying the market with around 32.74m tons. (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Nov 19, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20111118D1811A02.htm -> International tax collaboration nets extra JPY85bn Gone are the days when the Japanese Tax Office let retired Yakuza and others off the hook if they managed to get their ill-gotten gains parked abroad, due to language and staffing limitations. The National Tax Agency has just declared that with recent bilateral tax treaties in place, it has been able to recover some JPY85bn in undeclared income in the last 10 years. The Tax Agency reckons that about 6% of that number (US$5.7bn) was specific tax evasion. Japan now has tax treaties with 64 countries and regions, including the Cayman Islands and other low-tax, no-tax jurisdictions. (Source: TT commentary from japantimes.co.jp, Nov 19, 2011) http://www.japantimes.co.jp/text/nb20111119a6.html -> India-based Lupin snaps up J pharma company Indian generic pharmaceuticals firm Lupin has purchased Tokyo-based injectables firm I'rom Pharma, its second M&A in Japan. The purchase price was undisclosed. I'rom does about JPY5.3bn in sales to 1,400 Government-set fixed-price (DPC) clinics and hospitals, which make up about 35% of all the hospital beds in Japan. ***Ed: We find it interesting that at this stage there is no hue and cry by the Japan Medical Association (JMA) about encroachment on the national health system by foreign drug companies. We suppose it's because although generics reduce income to doctors, who get paid according to how much they prescribe, some foreign encroachment is better than a broken health system, which would otherwise be the alternative as the government has to start cutting back on health spending.** (Source: TT commentary from reuters.com, Nov 17, 2011) http://reut.rs/tAYaKQ -> Interesting data about high net worth individuals Interesting article from Bloomberg this last week, about high net worth individuals in Japan. The article quotes sources as saying that the high net worth pool in Japan owns about US$4.63trn in assets (2010 figure), up 6.97% from 2009. It reckons that the share of asset managers is 50% between Mitsubishi-UFJ, Mizuho, and Sumitomo-Mitsui, 20% to Japanese brokerages, 20% to foreign brokerages, and 10% to boutiques. The article goes on to discuss the conservative nature of Japanese high net worth individuals, and that typically they are invested in: 19% equities (global average is 33%), fixed income 25%, and cash and deposits 29% (16% elsewhere in Asia). (Source: TT commentary from bloomberg.com, Nov 16, 2011) http://bloom.bg/ucneo9 NOTE: Broken links Many online news sources remove their articles after just a few days of posting them, thus breaking our links -- we apologize for the inconvenience. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CANDIDATE ROUND UP/VACANCIES => BiOS, a Division of the LINC Media group, is actively marketing the following positions for customers setting up or expanding in Japan, as well as other employers of bilinguals. ** HIGHLIGHTED POSITION BiOS is urgently looking for a Business Analyst (SAP) with experience managing huge amounts of corporate confidential data under SAP, at our client?s office in the Meguro-ku area. The candidate will be responsible for overseeing the inputting, updating, and management of the company?s data ( many departments such as; sales, marketing, finance, logistics, etc.) under SAP, as well as integrating existing data from current databases (mainly Excel) to SAP. You will also be responsible for representing the company?s Japan engineering team for reporting and coordination with other branches located worldwide (some overseas business travel may be required). Due to the technical nature and demanding work environment, this position is suitable for someone with solid experience managing huge amounts of data under SAP. In addition, since this role requires direct communications with both Japanese and overseas employees, fluent English and Japanese will be required. Remuneration is JPY4m ? JPY6m depending on your experience and skill level. ** POSITIONS VACANT - Helpdesk Engineer, global telco, JPY3.5M ? JPY4M - Data Center Server/Nw Engr, Japanese IT co, JPY4M ? JPY6M - Senior Support Engineer, BiOS, JPY4.5M ? JPY5.5M - Service Delivery Manager, global IT co, JPY 8M ? JPY11M - Bilingual Desktop Engrs global law firm, JPY4M ? JPY4.5M Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: tomohiro.kimura at biosjp.com ** BiOS Job Mail Every 2 weeks BiOS sends out a regular communication to its job seeking candidates, called BiOS Job Mail. Every edition carries a list of BiOS's current and most up-to-date vacancies, with each entry featuring a short job description and a direct link to the main entry on the BiOS home page. Regardless of whether you are unemployed and searching, thinking about a career change, or just curious to know if there is something out there that might suit you better, the BiOS Job Mail newsletter is an easy and convenient way for you to stay informed. If you would like to register for the BiOS Job Mail, or to find out more, please email kenji.sakota at biosjp.com. Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: tomohiro.kimura at biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- --------- BIOS - Bilingual IT Systems and Support --------- BiOS full-service IT solutions has a new service. Now the largest independently owned bilingual IT support company in Tokyo, BiOS offers some of the most competitive services available to multinationals whether large or small. Data Center staff and managed services, Help Desk, desktop, and network support. Server virtualization, cloud computing hosting and solutions, general software development. For more information on these and other SI and IT services, in English or Japanese: Phone: (03) 4588-2220, Email: solutions at biosjp.com Web: www.biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ UPCOMING EVENTS/ANNOUNCEMENTS ---------------- Start a Company in Japan ----------------- Entrepreneur's Handbook Seminar 3rd of December, 2011 If you have been considering setting up your own company, find out what it takes to make it successful. Terrie Lloyd, founder of over 17 start-up companies in Japan, will be giving an English-language seminar and Q and A on starting up a company in Japan. This is an ideal opportunity to find out what is involved, and to ask specific questions that are not normally answered in business books. All materials are in English and are Japan-focused. For more details: http://www.japaninc.com/entrepreneur_handbook_seminar ----------------------------------------------------------- ----------------- Director Training Course ---------------- In early December, the nonprofit Board Director Training Institute of Japan will offer its first two-day ?director training? course, covering not only legal and corporate governance topics but also the leading edge of management subjects that responsible directors need to understand: risk management, interpreting financial statements, strategy, M&A etc. The course will be in Japanese, and has a first-rate lineup of lecturers from leading business/law schools and institutions such as Deloitte, Monitor Group, White & Case, and GCA. Let your friends - or companies you invest in - know that they can apply to this "first-of-its-kind" course at: info at bdti.or.jp! ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CORRECTIONS/FEEDBACK In this section we run comments and corrections submitted by readers. We encourage you to spot our mistakes and amplify our points, by email, to editors at terrie.com. *** No comments this week. *********************************************************** END SUBSCRIBERS: 8,328 members as of Nov 20, 2011 (We purge our list regularly.) +++ ABOUT US STAFF Written by: Terrie Lloyd (terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com) HELP: E-mail Terrie-request at mailman.japaninc.com with the word 'help' in the subject or body (don't include the quotes), and you will get back a message with instructions. FEEDBACK Send letters (Feedback, Inquiries & Information) to the editor to terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com. ADVERTISING INFORMATION For more information on advertising in this newsletter, Contact ads at japaninc.com. SUBSCRIBE Get Terrie's Take by giving your name and email address at http://www.japaninc.com/newsletters/free_sign_up, or go straight to Mailman at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ Copyright 2011 Japan Inc. Communications Inc. ----------------- Japan Inc opens up Japan ---------------- J at pan Inc is Japan's only independently published English- language business website. Authoritatively chronicling online the business trends in Japan, each posting brings you in-depth analysis of business, people and technology in the world's second largest economy. Visit www.japaninc.com for the best business insight on Japan available. ----------------------------------------------------------- -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From terrie at mailman.japaninc.com Mon Nov 28 08:58:10 2011 From: terrie at mailman.japaninc.com (Terrie's Take) Date: Mon, 28 Nov 2011 08:58:10 +0900 Subject: Terrie's Take 640 -- Groundshifts in Systems Integration Sector, ebiz news from Japan Message-ID: * * * * * * * * * T E R R I E 'S T A K E * * * * * * * A weekly roundup of news & information from Terrie Lloyd. (http://www.terrie.com) General Edition Sunday, November 27, 2011, Issue No. 640 +++ INDEX - What's New -- Groundshifts in Systems Integration Sector - News -- Possible first in Japan-US custody dispute - Candidate Roundup/Vacancies - Upcoming Events - Corrections/Feedback - News Credits SUBSCRIBE to, UNSUBSCRIBE from Terrie's Take at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take, or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ ----------- PBXL TOTAL TELEPHONY SOLUTION (TTS) ----------- PAYING TOO MUCH FOR MONTHLY CALLING CHARGES? PBXL?s Total Telephony Solution is the answer for unlimited domestic and international calling. With PBXL cloud telephony and TTS, enjoy a fully managed solution with zero variable costs. No office is too big or too small to save money. - Unlimited calling within Japan and 23 countries - Flat-rate calling charges based on number of phones - PBXL will review your current bills and save you money Check out our website today at http://en.pbxl.jp e-mail us at info at pbxl.jp or call us at 03-4550-2557 ------------ PBXL is BUSINESS COMMUNICATIONS -------------- +++ WHAT'S NEW Japan has long been a market where clients have demanded that software companies customize their products to do exactly what they want, or they won't buy them. Coming out of the mainframe era, Fujitsu, IBM, SAP, and Oracle facilitated this trend by offering reduced hardware costs and refocusing clients' budgets on the software, and all was good. But the sticker shock for software created significant resistance lower down the food chain, and as a result most of the customized solutions stayed at the top tier exporting companies. There are a few thousand of these types of companies in Japan and as their needs have become saturated, the ability to sell more software has severely tailed off. The response by the traditional Systems Integrators (SI'ers) has been two-fold, firstly they have tried to go down market, offering mildly lower cost solutions with less functionality and customization. This has been met with a big yawn and most second-tier companies have simply put their IT development plans on hold. Secondly, SI firms have slashed internal costs by either off-shoring their workforces, or simply by paying less to their developers. We think this is why today you can get a software developer in Japan for not much more than a similar person in Bangalore -- maybe just a 30% price difference, but without the language problems. Unfortunately, cutting salaries also has the effect of driving quality and innovation out of the sector. [Continued below...] -- NAGAMINE & MISHIMA - Securing Your Success in Japan --- Starting a new company in Japan? Looking to streamline your current operations? The team of bilingual experts at Nagamine & Mishima is able to provide high quality accounting, payroll and tax services that both exceed expectations and fit your budget. Our services help customers improve their operations and bottom line results. To find out more about our services and how we can help your business in Japan succeed, please visit our website www.nagamine-mishima.com or reach us directly by telephone at 03-3581-1975 or by email at info at nagamine-mishima.com. ---------- YOUR BOTTOM LINE IS OUR TOP PRIORITY------------ [...Article continues] Against the long-term saturation trend, you also have two pivotal events that have hastened the pace of change in the Japanese software market. The first, which has affected the rest of the world as well, has been the Lehman Shock. Banks and manufacturers are the traditional havens for SAP/Oracle type solutions and these sectors are under huge pressure to reduce IT costs. Mostly they have gone abroad, for Japan this has typically meant relocating back office operations in Dalian, China or software in Bangalore, India. Either way, it has meant less work for Systems Integration (SI) companies back home. Going abroad has been difficult for most SI firms, with companies like Hitachi putting hundreds of engineers into places like India but so far with not much to show for their efforts. However, some, such as Fujitsu and more recently NTT Data and NTT Communications have met with greater success. It's been amazing to watch both NTT subsidiaries expand globally through strategic acquisitions. They have learned from the Verio debacle to go after hard core foreign SI companies, and to leave the fashionable targets alone. We would consider NTT Communications' acquisition of South Africa-based Dimension Data as a "hard core" purchase. Likewise, NTT Data's late 2010 purchase of US-based Keane Systems was gutsy and far-sighted. Keane was a full 1/3 of the size of NTT Data and had/has a global reach in systems development and integration. Then in March of this year, NTT Data also bought US-based but India-leveraged Intelligroup, a consulting and services business. Now, suddenly, with these and several other acquisitions, NTT Data has gone from being a nobody to becoming the 9th largest software company globally, with revenues of over US$11bn. The other pivotal event has been the earthquake. What the earthquake has done is to make companies aware of two things: one, the importance of redundancy, be it for data storage or business continuity. And two, the fact that the domestic economy is not just in a temporary funk but instead is terminally shrinking. Why it has taken an earthquake to make illuminate corporate minds is hard to say, but clearly there has been a psychological wake-up call that is now gaining momentum, with most Japanese SI firms looking at going abroad in some shape or form. Continuity and international business rendered in the form of IT services, are not price-compatible with the big domestic software customizations and locally-hosted server farms of the past. Instead, they are best addressed by centralized best-of-breed cloud services, especially when you throw in mobile devices, web commerce, and other major shifts in consumer and corporate buying patterns. Thus it is that there appears to be a recent (last 6 months) resurgence in interest in Japan of foreign cloud applications companies, and in data centers. Whether the software is customizable or not is becoming a secondary issue compared to price and safety. Our sister company, Japan Inc. Holdings (www.japandoor.com), which represents the State of Ohio and which is involved in market entry and backoffice support for start-ups, is seeing a strong increase in inquiries from firms all over the world. We can't say which companies JIH is speaking to, but none of them would surprise you. They are leaders in games, data delivery, classic consumer portals, cell phone applications, social media data synthesis, medical information, online security, cloud-based classic B2B applications, online learning, and others. Perhaps what is surprising is that most of them, even before getting to Japan, already have Japanese clients and are coming over because they are being asked to. Uniformly these foreign cloud companies offer low-cost subscription-based services, which their clients are learning to love. If you're a 1,000-person company, you can't compare JPY3,000 per user per month with the previous option of JPY100m plus annual maintenance charges of 20%, plus servers, plus wages. This sudden change in the SI landscape is leaving those firms who are overly domestic looking very flat-footed, and they are suffering as a result. Just last month (October), IDC Japan lowered its 2011 growth forecast for the SI market for the second time this year, saying that it would contract even more than the 2.1% to JPY4.8trn that it was forecasting. This number is actually the third straight year of IT spending contraction, down about 7%, or JPY390bn, from 2008. An example of flat-footedness can be seen in NEC, which announced on Friday that it was raising JPY89bn of syndicated loans from same-keiritsu bank Sumitomo-Mitsui. They mumbled something in the press about trying to move their debt to long-term loans, but the reality is that they are losing lots of money and are in trouble. What do these massive changes in the SI landscape mean for the rest of us? Firstly, we are seeing a turning point in how the Japanese view and buy software. Non-customizable but templated cloud solutions are going to see extraordinary growth over the next 5 years. Japan has wonderful infrastructure and mobile devices are now sufficiently intelligent that desktop PCs as we know them will disappear. So this is a prime market for cloud-based firms. Secondly, the clock is ticking for Japan's approximately 30,000 domestic SI firms, most of whom are not geared up to go international. They know that they are at a disadvantage, and as a result they are interested in tying up with foreign cloud software companies looking for a partner here in Japan. We think there will be a boom in foreign firms returning to Japan in 2012, and that this will have beneficial trickle-down effects in those sectors that support such companies -- recruiting, data centers, and real estate being just a few that come to mind. ***************** Lastly, our final Entrepreneur Business Handbook seminar for 2011 is on this coming Saturday. We still have a couple of seats available for last-minute sign-ups. More details in the Events section below. ...The information janitors/ ***------------------------****-------------------------*** ------ Delta Air Lines - YOUR CONNECTION TO PARADISE ------ Introducing our new service from Fukuoka to Honolulu starting from December 28, 2011. Plan your next dream getaway and be rewarded. Earn 5,000 bonus miles when you fly round-trip on BusinessElite, or 2,500 bonus miles for round-trip Economy Class tickets. Register and travel before April 4, 2012 and be one of the first in Japan to enjoy our direct connection to this paradise island. This nonstop service is an addition to our expanding network in Japan to 9 U.S. gateways and onwards to over 250 U.S. cities. To qualify for this exclusive offer, visit delta.com, register today and travel through April 4, 2012. Please Note: All SkyMiles program rules apply to SkyMiles program membership, miles, offers, mile accrual, mile redemption and travel benefits. Offers, rules and benefits subject to change without notice. To review the rules, please visit Membership Guide & Program Rules. ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ NEWS - Possible first in Japan-US custody dispute - "Not quite Matsuzaka beef" served to Chinese tourists - TSE lags in bourse speed game - Most single eligible men have no girlfriend - Corporate governance laws to change -> Possible first in Japan-US custody dispute Although it took a absent-minded trip to Hawaii and a subsequent arrest and US court hearing to make it happen, it appears that the first ever successful court-mandated repatriation of a mixed-nationality child from Japan to the USA will take place soon. A Kobe-based 43-year old Japanese women, who abducted her 6-year old daughter back to Japan after the US-based husband won custody of the girl, has apparently agreed to allow the child to return to her father in return for her (the woman) being allowed to retain US residency rights. ***Ed: A taste of things to come? Well, it's not really a test of the Japanese court system, but rather the desires of a quirky mom determining this case, so we're not viewing this as a changing of old attitudes. Currently Japan is still a major haven for child abduction by Japanese spouses in an unwanted international marriage.** (Source: TT commentary from mainichi.jp, Nov 22, 2011) http://mdn.mainichi.jp/mdnnews/news/20111122p2g00m0dm113000c.html -> "Not quite Matsuzaka beef" served to Chinese tourists The quote from a restaurant owner caught serving mislabeled beef to Chinese tourists tells it all. He apparently said, "It was almost comparable to that of Matsusaka beef, so I thought it would be all right." What he doesn't share is that he also charged the full wagyu price for the inferior product, ripping off 20-30 Chinese tourists a month for 4-5 years. ***Ed: This is the kind of behavior that will taint Japan's image quicker than anything. This guy needs to have the book thrown at him.** (Source: TT commentary from japantimes.co.jp, Nov 27, 2011) http://www.japantimes.co.jp/text/nn20111127a7.html -> TSE lags in bourse speed game Interesting article in the Nikkei earlier this week about the comparative speeds of trade execution of the Tokyo Stock Exchange, Osaka Stock Exchange, and exchanges abroad such as the LSE, NYSE, and NASDAQ. According to the article, the TSE's 18-month old Arrowhead system is already out of date, rendering trades in about 2ms. While this is certainly much quicker than the OSE's doddering 100ms, it's still 15 TIMES slower than the London Stock Exchange, which can execute trades in just 125uS. Why is speed important? To be able to handle program trading by large funds and to keep investors focused on Japanese stocks versus moving somewhere else. ***Ed: Interesting that the article doesn't address at all the issue of the trader-side systems, which also have to be blazing fast to take advantage of the exchange speeds. Right here in Tokyo we have one of the world's leading players in trading systems, in the form of Fusion Systems' Raptor product. There will be an interview with one of the Raptor principals in December's ACCJ Journal.** (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Nov 26, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20111126D25HH180.htm -> Most single eligible men have no girlfriend This news item is already all over the web, but we couldn't pass it up... According to a think tank related to the Health Ministry, 61.4% of eligible men aged 18-34 have no girlfriend, while for single women 49.5% have no boyfriend. The numbers come from a once-in-5-years poll done in June 2010. Apparently the number of non-dating single men rose 9.2% over the previous 2005 survey. ***Ed: OK, why are all these guys single and not interested in dating? Shy? Poor? Ugly? Apparently it's because they're busy with work or study, or are simply really picky. Sounds lame to us. We wonder why they don't do a study on married people who have a girlfriend or boyfriend? Maybe that's where all the single girls and guys are hanging out? Clearly they're not going to report that they are doing so...** (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Nov 26, 3011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20111126D2511A22.htm -> Corporate governance laws to change In the wake of the Olympus affair, an advisory panel at the Ministry of Justice is working on a draft to change the corporations law, including changes to corporate governance. The draft, which has been underway for over 12 months and which will be ready for submission to the Diet next month, apparently recommends that all listed firms have non-executive external directors. ***Ed: This won't achieve much. As anyone who has been running a company here already knows. Currently there is a requirement for all companies to have a "statutory auditor" which is someone who fills the same type of role that an external director would in a larger firm. However, given that this person can be your wife or best friend, and simply rubber stamps the tax filings, it's a meaningless effort. This of course is the point that Woodford kept making about Olympus. Everyone, including the external directors, were in Kikukawa's pocket.** (Source: TT commentary from reuters.com, Nov 26, 2011) http://reut.rs/uRqGxP NOTE: Broken links Many online news sources remove their articles after just a few days of posting them, thus breaking our links -- we apologize for the inconvenience. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CANDIDATE ROUND UP/VACANCIES => BiOS, a Division of the LINC Media group, is actively marketing the following positions for customers setting up or expanding in Japan, as well as other employers of bilinguals. ** HIGHLIGHTED POSITION BiOS is urgently looking for a Bilingual Desktop Engineer with experience acting as a single point of contact for incidents and inquires regarding infrastructure and applications support. Location is at our client?s office in the Shinagawa-ku area. The candidate will be responsible for end user support, service desk management, project management, and for managing both infrastructure and applications issues -- following ITIL principles. The candidate will also be responsible for data Center operation support, including backup monitoring as well as a daily system check. Finally, you will also be responsible for conducting end user training on office IT products and systems. Due to the technical nature and demanding work environment, this position is suitable for someone with solid experience as a desktop or user support person, or equivalent position, for at least 3 years. In addition, since this role requires supporting end users in both English and Japanese, business-level English and native-level Japanese will be required. Remuneration is JPY5m ? JPY8m, depending on your experience and skill level. ** POSITIONS VACANT - Sales Executive (Data Center), JPY4M ? JPY6M - Helpdesk Support Engr, Japanese telco, JPY3.5M ? JPY4.5M - Senior Support Engineer, BiOS, JPY4.5M ? JPY5.5M - Desktop Support Engineer, global law firm, JPY4M ? JPY5M - Cabling Engineer, global bank, JPY 3.5M ? JPY4M Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: tomohiro.kimura at biosjp.com ** BiOS Job Mail Every 2 weeks BiOS sends out a regular communication to its job seeking candidates, called BiOS Job Mail. Every edition carries a list of BiOS's current and most up-to-date vacancies, with each entry featuring a short job description and a direct link to the main entry on the BiOS home page. Regardless of whether you are unemployed and searching, thinking about a career change, or just curious to know if there is something out there that might suit you better, the BiOS Job Mail newsletter is an easy and convenient way for you to stay informed. If you would like to register for the BiOS Job Mail, or to find out more, please email kenji.sakota at biosjp.com. Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: tomohiro.kimura at biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- --------- BIOS - Bilingual IT Systems and Support --------- BiOS full-service IT solutions has a new service. Now the largest independently owned bilingual IT support company in Tokyo, BiOS offers some of the most competitive services available to multinationals whether large or small. Data Center staff and managed services, Help Desk, desktop, and network support. Server virtualization, cloud computing hosting and solutions, general software development. For more information on these and other SI and IT services, in English or Japanese: Phone: (03) 4588-2220, Email: solutions at biosjp.com Web: www.biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ UPCOMING EVENTS/ANNOUNCEMENTS ---------------- Start a Company in Japan ----------------- Entrepreneur's Handbook Seminar 3rd of December, 2011 If you have been considering setting up your own company, find out what it takes to make it successful. Terrie Lloyd, founder of over 17 start-up companies in Japan, will be giving an English-language seminar and Q and A on starting up a company in Japan. This is an ideal opportunity to find out what is involved, and to ask specific questions that are not normally answered in business books. All materials are in English and are Japan-focused. For more details: http://www.japaninc.com/entrepreneur_handbook_seminar ----------------------------------------------------------- ----------------- Director Training Course ---------------- In early December, the nonprofit Board Director Training Institute of Japan will offer its first two-day ?director training? course, covering not only legal and corporate governance topics but also the leading edge of management subjects that responsible directors need to understand: risk management, interpreting financial statements, strategy, M&A etc. The course will be in Japanese, and has a first-rate lineup of lecturers from leading business/law schools and institutions such as Deloitte, Monitor Group, White & Case, and GCA. Let your friends - or companies you invest in - know that they can apply to this "first-of-its-kind" course at: info at bdti.or.jp! ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CORRECTIONS/FEEDBACK In this section we run comments and corrections submitted by readers. We encourage you to spot our mistakes and amplify our points, by email, to editors at terrie.com. *** No comments this week. *********************************************************** END SUBSCRIBERS: 8,314 members as of Nov 27, 2011 (We purge our list regularly.) +++ ABOUT US STAFF Written by: Terrie Lloyd (terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com) HELP: E-mail Terrie-request at mailman.japaninc.com with the word 'help' in the subject or body (don't include the quotes), and you will get back a message with instructions. FEEDBACK Send letters (Feedback, Inquiries & Information) to the editor to terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com. ADVERTISING INFORMATION For more information on advertising in this newsletter, Contact ads at japaninc.com. SUBSCRIBE Get Terrie's Take by giving your name and email address at http://www.japaninc.com/newsletters/free_sign_up, or go straight to Mailman at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ Copyright 2011 Japan Inc. Communications Inc. ----------------- Japan Inc opens up Japan ---------------- J at pan Inc is Japan's only independently published English- language business website. Authoritatively chronicling online the business trends in Japan, each posting brings you in-depth analysis of business, people and technology in the world's second largest economy. Visit www.japaninc.com for the best business insight on Japan available. ----------------------------------------------------------- -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From terrie at mailman.japaninc.com Mon Dec 5 09:27:54 2011 From: terrie at mailman.japaninc.com (Terrie's Take) Date: Mon, 5 Dec 2011 09:27:54 +0900 Subject: Terrie's Take 641 -- Counseling a Generation of Unloved Singles, ebiz news from Japan Message-ID: * * * * * * * * * T E R R I E 'S T A K E * * * * * * * A weekly roundup of news & information from Terrie Lloyd. (http://www.terrie.com) General Edition Sunday, December 04, 2011, Issue No. 641 +++ INDEX - What's New -- Counseling a Generation of Unloved Singles - News -- Mammoth clone experiment being discussed - Candidate Roundup/Vacancies - Upcoming Events - Corrections/Feedback - News Credits SUBSCRIBE to, UNSUBSCRIBE from Terrie's Take at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take, or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ ----------- PBXL TOTAL TELEPHONY SOLUTION (TTS) ----------- PAYING TOO MUCH FOR MONTHLY CALLING CHARGES? PBXL?s Total Telephony Solution is the answer for unlimited domestic and international calling. With PBXL cloud telephony and TTS, enjoy a fully managed solution with zero variable costs. No office is too big or too small to save money. - Unlimited calling within Japan and 23 countries - Flat-rate calling charges based on number of phones - PBXL will review your current bills and save you money Check out our website today at http://en.pbxl.jp e-mail us at info at pbxl.jp or call us at 03-4550-2557 ------------ PBXL is BUSINESS COMMUNICATIONS -------------- +++ WHAT'S NEW Two weeks ago a Welfare Ministry think tank released results of a survey showing that 61.4% of single Japanese men aged 18-34 have no girlfriend and that 49.5% of the same age women are not dating either. As is often the case with government surveys, the real interest was in people's attitudes to getting married rather than how they spend their lives as singles, since this directly impacts the birth rate and therefore the worker base to support social welfare in the future. The sample was 7,000 people, representing an overall population of around 18m people. 60% of those polled said they were still single either because of work and study commitments (40%) or because they hadn't met the right person yet (20%). This certainly tallies with the common wisdom that with the Japanese domestic economy stuck in a permanent recession (i.e., "domestic" versus exporters who are carrying the country), people are having to work longer and in lower paid jobs in order to support themselves. If you're broke, exhausted, or depressed, getting married is probably the least of your concerns. It's hard to see this situation changing any time soon, if we go by conventional wisdom alone, since the outlook for the nation itself is pretty bleak. By 2030, there will only be 1.8 workers for every retired person, meaning that either taxes have to go way up or that retirement will become a time of relative poverty for many. This isn't the kind of future that makes people want to expand their lives with a partner and a family. But for us the really interesting segment in this poll was the 40% who said there was "no real need" to get married, and of these, 45% of the men (as a population group, around 1.4m people) who said they have no particular interest in dating the opposite sex. So what's going on there? [Continued below...] -- NAGAMINE & MISHIMA - Securing Your Success in Japan --- Starting a new company in Japan? Looking to streamline your current operations? The team of bilingual experts at Nagamine & Mishima is able to provide high quality accounting, payroll and tax services that both exceed expectations and fit your budget. Our services help customers improve their operations and bottom line results. To find out more about our services and how we can help your business in Japan succeed, please visit our website www.nagamine-mishima.com or reach us directly by telephone at 03-3581-1975 or by email at info at nagamine-mishima.com. ---------- YOUR BOTTOM LINE IS OUR TOP PRIORITY------------ [...Article continues] Partly the answer is to be found in the age group being questioned. 18-34 year olds are no longer necessarily prime marrying age group even though statistically the average marrying age for men is 30.5. There is a significant number of men (in particular) getting married much later than this. In our own circle of friends, we know of a number of eligible bachelors in their mid-30's and early 40's who have been having a very satisfying social life, and are only just starting to get down to the idea of getting hitched. So is it selfishness that is causing people to want to enjoy their single lives longer? Possibly. Certainly the idea of having kids is to most people a negative one. Kids slow you down, they are a big drain on income, they need constant attention, there are long waiting lines for day care, and they force you to stay with one partner for a long period. In fact, apart from the feelings of love, they have very little going for them. And if you come from a generation (the 80's) when the parents were continually busy, or continually worried and depressed (the 90's) then probably this 18-34 age group didn't get a lot of love and affection as children -- so why would they equate having children with love and tenderness themselves? Easier to skip between partners without too much emotional entanglement, or to avoid having partners all together. What we are saying is that we think there are a lot of people in this age segment who have emotional issues and given the current declining but still generous social environment, they have the luxury of being able to pander to these feelings rather than repress them as earlier age groups in Japan's factory worker era had to do. As a result, you have a swathe of singles who are responding to their own childhood feelings by either withdrawing from the dating game or by leading alternative singles-oriented life styles. If this assumption is true, it means that the government's hand-wringing over child-care centers and how to get people to date more may all be for naught. This might sound kind of deep, and indeed, we could be wrong. Maybe it is all just about the economy. After all, births did increase for several years (2006-2009) after the mini-recovery of 2004-2007. However, marriages did not bounce at the same rate, and currently there are still only 700,000 marriages a year in Japan (2010). Most likely that birth blip was in existing families having an extra child, rather than singles suddenly feeling paternal/maternal again. How can Japan address its declining marriage rate? If the problem is psychological at a personal level, then it may not be possible through the economy alone, to reverse the trend of people not wanting to commit. Yes, there are the fence sitters, and the government could go a long way towards getting those people to marry, simply by making it easier for couples to have and look after children. We thought the DPJ's now unpopular action of providing generous child welfare checks was a great idea, although political pressure has since reined in that move. And besides, the fence sitters are just the low-hanging fruit in the search for a solution. A larger segment of the perpetually unmarried population has deeper problems. For them, we believe the only way forward is emotional counseling to help change attitudes towards children and to discover love and tenderness that must have been lacking in their lives. The challenge is in getting those with such problems to face up to them and to get them to seek out such counseling. Generally emotional distress in Japan (as with anywhere, really) is viewed publicly as a personal weakness, and so people who need such help repress it. This is nothing new, but whereas in the 60's and 70's factories, dormitories, and extended families ensured that young people got married, now the anonymity of urban living lets them hide away. There is also the problem of how community counselors are perceived. Generally speaking counseling is not considered a profession in Japan, as evidenced by the fact that testimony from counselors is typically not accepted by family courts (versus that of clinical psychologists, who are more likely to be taken seriously). As a result, counselors tend to be well-meaning but usually woefully under-qualified and usually non-paid old folks, who compound the negative image. To get past this negative presentation of counseling, both the image and education needed to become a counselor really needs upgrading. Indeed, we think the government should make the increasing number of unmarrieds a serious national priority. Instead of cute census-style polls, there should be some proper government funded studies into the psychology and social situations of this large group of people, with a commitment to follow through with professional counseling and social programs to help people get past their aversion to getting married. Unfortunately, since this sort of initiative will involve potentially millions of people, plus modification of the school system (so as to not perpetuate the problem), it's unlikely to happen in our lifetimes. So what's the alternative? How about increasing immigration...? :-) ...The information janitors/ ***------------------------****-------------------------*** ------ Delta Air Lines - YOUR CONNECTION TO PARADISE ------ Introducing our new service from Fukuoka to Honolulu starting from December 28, 2011. Plan your next dream getaway and be rewarded. Earn 5,000 bonus miles when you fly round-trip on BusinessElite, or 2,500 bonus miles for round-trip Economy Class tickets. Register and travel before April 4, 2012 and be one of the first in Japan to enjoy our direct connection to this paradise island. This nonstop service is an addition to our expanding network in Japan to 9 U.S. gateways and onwards to over 250 U.S. cities. To qualify for this exclusive offer, visit delta.com, register today and travel through April 4, 2012. Please Note: All SkyMiles program rules apply to SkyMiles program membership, miles, offers, mile accrual, mile redemption and travel benefits. Offers, rules and benefits subject to change without notice. To review the rules, please visit Membership Guide & Program Rules. ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ NEWS - Almost 90% of manufacturers look to overseas markets - Mammoth clone experiment being discussed - Mixi/Twitter create alliance - Consumers forget how to use electricity again -> Almost 90% of manufacturers look to overseas markets If there was any doubt that export fever is upon us, the results of a Ministry of Finance poll should put it to rest. According to the survey, a full 87.2% of manufacturers plan to strengthen or expand foreign operations, while just 25.9% said they will expand domestically. Chemicals and auto companies are the sectors most interested in foreign expansion, at 92.1% and 91.6% respectively. ***Ed: Plenty of global and international services business as this trend picks up.** (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Dec 2, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/fr/tnks/Nni20111202D02SS908.htm -> Mammoth clone experiment being discussed Researchers from Kinki University and Sakha Republic (Russia) are apparently discussing the viability of creating a cloned Mammoth from a 10,000-year old but well preserved bone marrow of an animal found in Siberian permafrost in August this year. The plan calls for implanting bone marrow cells into the egg cells of an elephant. The resulting embryos would then be implanted inside elephants for gestation. ***Ed: Put the resulting Mammoth on display at Ueno Zoo, and this could be part of some bold plan to bring tourists back to Japan... ;-)! (Source: TT commentary from afp on Google, Dec 3, 2011) http://bit.ly/sauTPO -> Mixi/Twitter create alliance Data just publicized by Nielsen NetRatings Japan shows that Japanese SNS operator Mixi is falling farther behind its foreign competitors and that the Galapagos effect has no value in web applications. According to Nielsen, Twitter had 14.5m users, Facebook 11.3m, and Mixi 9.4m. Perhaps not coincidentally, Mixi and Twitter are announcing a strategic alliance, aimed at presenting each firm's complementary services to the users of the other. ***Ed: This is all supposedly part of a competitive response to Facebook, which is making tremendous gains in Japan over the last 12 months.** (Source: TT commentary from washingtonpost.com, Nov 30, 2011) http://wapo.st/vf5b9g -> Consumers forget how to use electricity again Perhaps the "setsuden" energy saving message was too good, because it seems that Tohoku and Tokyo residents have forgotten how to use electricity in the same volumes they did pre-3/11. Overall the demand for power nationwide fell 5.4% in November, compared to November last year. However, what is perhaps more surprising is that power consumption for last month fell an amazing 8.8% and 8.2% for Tohoku and Tokyo respectively. ***Ed: This is now the ninth month of y-o-y declines, and must have the utilities companies worried. After all, what is setsuden for us is lost business for them.** (Source: TT commentary from reuters.com, Dec 3, 2011) http://af.reuters.com/article/energyOilNews/idAFL4E7N201820111202 NOTE: Broken links Many online news sources remove their articles after just a few days of posting them, thus breaking our links -- we apologize for the inconvenience. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CANDIDATE ROUND UP/VACANCIES => BiOS, a Division of the LINC Media group, is actively marketing the following positions for customers setting up or expanding in Japan, as well as other employers of bilinguals. ** HIGHLIGHTED POSITION BiOS is urgently looking for a Server/Network engineer with experience designing and constructing large-scale systems, at our client?s office in the Tokyo area. The candidate will be responsible for working inside several data centers located in Kanto; constructing server and network systems used by both domestic and international clients. They will also be responsible for monitoring and configuring systems constructed according to requests from clients. You will also be responsible for acting as a pre- and post-sales engineer when the company's sales executives are introducing its services to clients. Due to the technical nature and demanding work environment, this position is suitable for someone with solid experience as a network or server engineer and with minimal direction from management. In addition, since this role requires direct communications with clients in both English and Japanese, business-level communication skills in English and native-level Japanese will be required. Remuneration is JPY5m ? JPY6m depending on your experience and skill level. ** POSITIONS VACANT - Cabling Engineer, BiOS, JPY3M ? JPY4M - Bilingual Desktop Support Engr, IT co., JPY5M ? JPY8M - Sales Team Account Manager, BiOS, JPY3.5M ? JPY4.5M - Desktop Support Engineer, global law firm, JPY4M ? JPY5M - Network Monitoring Engr, Japanese IT co, JPY3M - JPY3.5M Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: tomohiro.kimura at biosjp.com ** BiOS Job Mail Every 2 weeks BiOS sends out a regular communication to its job seeking candidates, called BiOS Job Mail. Every edition carries a list of BiOS's current and most up-to-date vacancies, with each entry featuring a short job description and a direct link to the main entry on the BiOS home page. Regardless of whether you are unemployed and searching, thinking about a career change, or just curious to know if there is something out there that might suit you better, the BiOS Job Mail newsletter is an easy and convenient way for you to stay informed. If you would like to register for the BiOS Job Mail, or to find out more, please email kenji.sakota at biosjp.com. Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: tomohiro.kimura at biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- --------- BIOS - Bilingual IT Systems and Support --------- BiOS full-service IT solutions has a new service. Now the largest independently owned bilingual IT support company in Tokyo, BiOS offers some of the most competitive services available to multinationals whether large or small. Data Center staff and managed services, Help Desk, desktop, and network support. Server virtualization, cloud computing hosting and solutions, general software development. For more information on these and other SI and IT services, in English or Japanese: Phone: (03) 4588-2220, Email: solutions at biosjp.com Web: www.biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ UPCOMING EVENTS/ANNOUNCEMENTS No events for this week. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CORRECTIONS/FEEDBACK In this section we run comments and corrections submitted by readers. We encourage you to spot our mistakes and amplify our points, by email, to editors at terrie.com. *** No comments this week. *********************************************************** END SUBSCRIBERS: 8,310 members as of Dec 4, 2011 (We purge our list regularly.) +++ ABOUT US STAFF Written by: Terrie Lloyd (terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com) HELP: E-mail Terrie-request at mailman.japaninc.com with the word 'help' in the subject or body (don't include the quotes), and you will get back a message with instructions. FEEDBACK Send letters (Feedback, Inquiries & Information) to the editor to terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com. ADVERTISING INFORMATION For more information on advertising in this newsletter, Contact ads at japaninc.com. SUBSCRIBE Get Terrie's Take by giving your name and email address at http://www.japaninc.com/newsletters/free_sign_up, or go straight to Mailman at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ Copyright 2011 Japan Inc. Communications Inc. ----------------- Japan Inc opens up Japan ---------------- J at pan Inc is Japan's only independently published English- language business website. Authoritatively chronicling online the business trends in Japan, each posting brings you in-depth analysis of business, people and technology in the world's second largest economy. Visit www.japaninc.com for the best business insight on Japan available. ----------------------------------------------------------- -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From terrie at mailman.japaninc.com Mon Dec 12 08:29:10 2011 From: terrie at mailman.japaninc.com (Terrie's Take) Date: Mon, 12 Dec 2011 08:29:10 +0900 Subject: Terrie's Take 642 -- Another Olympus-style Scandal: JTI, ebiz news from Japan Message-ID: * * * * * * * * * T E R R I E 'S T A K E * * * * * * * A weekly roundup of news & information from Terrie Lloyd. (http://www.terrie.com) General Edition Sunday, December 11, 2011, Issue No. 642 +++ INDEX - What's New -- Another Olympus-style Scandal: JTI - News -- TEPCO claims "ownership" of radiation belongs to others - Candidate Roundup/Vacancies - Upcoming Events - Corrections/Feedback - News Credits SUBSCRIBE to, UNSUBSCRIBE from Terrie's Take at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take, or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ ----------- PBXL TOTAL TELEPHONY SOLUTION (TTS) ----------- PAYING TOO MUCH FOR MONTHLY CALLING CHARGES? PBXL?s Total Telephony Solution is the answer for unlimited domestic and international calling. With PBXL cloud telephony and TTS, enjoy a fully managed solution with zero variable costs. No office is too big or too small to save money. - Unlimited calling within Japan and 23 countries - Flat-rate calling charges based on number of phones - PBXL will review your current bills and save you money Check out our website today at http://en.pbxl.jp e-mail us at info at pbxl.jp or call us at 03-4550-2557 ------------ PBXL is BUSINESS COMMUNICATIONS -------------- +++ WHAT'S NEW A few weeks ago, after writing about the emerging Olympus scandal and how it read like a thriller novel, we received a tip from a reader that there is another potentially worse Japanese corporate scandal in the works, involving the international subsidiary of Japan Tobacco, JTI. At first we didn't take it seriously, because the reporter group breaking the story were working out of Belgrade, and, well, some of the accusations seemed pretty far-fetched -- smuggling, illegal counterfeiting factories, financing the Syrian Assad regime with indirect kickbacks, and other things. This view seemed to be confirmed in a November 4 news item from Reuters, which reported the fact that there were accusations against JTI by the reporter group, Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP), and which on requesting comment from JTI Reuters received the response that: "These matters have all been properly addressed and handled within JTI in line with our overall stance towards anti-illicit trade and my understanding is that it has been all solved or addressed already as far as JTI is concerned." The spokesperson, Hideyuki Yamamoto based at Japan Tobacco here in Tokyo then went on to dismiss the credibility of the whistleblowers by saying that the information in the OCCRP report had been circulated for the past two years or so by people believed to have been fired by JTI. So, this could all be a hoax, or as Yamamoto seems to be intimating in his comments to Reuters, a case of sour grapes by a fired employee. However, one of the people who was fired was in fact a senior manager in JTI's own investigating team, Dave Reynolds, and the information being "circulated" was none other than an April 2010 report by Mr. Reynolds to Japan Tobacco in Tokyo saying that his investigative unit was being harassed and even had email accounts hacked by parties hired by the top management in JTI, i.e., his own top management were trying to impede his group's investigations. Reynolds implored in his letter for the addressee, a Haruhiko Yamada here in Tokyo, to take the situation seriously and do something about its errant subsidiary. [Continued below...] -- NAGAMINE & MISHIMA - Securing Your Success in Japan --- Starting a new company in Japan? Looking to streamline your current operations? The team of bilingual experts at Nagamine & Mishima is able to provide high quality accounting, payroll and tax services that both exceed expectations and fit your budget. Our services help customers improve their operations and bottom line results. To find out more about our services and how we can help your business in Japan succeed, please visit our website www.nagamine-mishima.com or reach us directly by telephone at 03-3581-1975 or by email at info at nagamine-mishima.com. ---------- YOUR BOTTOM LINE IS OUR TOP PRIORITY------------ [...Article continues] Reynolds was the VP of Global Brand Integrity at JTI and was fired just days after rendering the report. Shades of Olympus? He is certainly no lightweight. Much like Michael Woodford of Olympus, Mr. Reynolds has a strong resume, which includes his current position (we found him on Linked In and subsequently had an email conversation with him) as SIO for Criminal Activities at the FBI. Prior to JTI he was a Foreign Services Officer at the US Department of State and earlier on an intelligence officer at the CIA. A guy like Mr. Reynolds probably doesn't need to make stuff up as is contained in his report, which you can find on the OCCRP website. http://www.reportingproject.net/. Go to the Story Documents tab, and look at PDF #10. Actually Reynold's April 10th report was the climax of a number of reports his team had provided JTI senior management on smuggling, intimidation, blind eyes turned to counterfeiting, kickbacks, Russian mob involvement, and other nefarious activities. He specifically stated in his final letter to Japan Tobacco that he thought the activities of some of the senior (non-Japanese) management in JTI itself bordered on being illegal and appeared to be in contravention with a 2007 agreement between the EU and JTI that required JTI to report all instances of smuggling that it uncovered. Pretty serious charges. Since Reynolds was fired, OCCRP says it has uncovered further and more recent documents from March-May this year which show that the hanky panky is still going on. JTI's Middle East business partner, IBCS, run by a fellow named Rami Makhlouf, is doing substantial business with the Syrian government and according to an EU report funds them through his activities. IBCS doesn't seem to care much about the EU sanctions and as an example shipped 90m duty free cigarettes to Syria four days after the sanctions were put in place. Further, on May 27th, JTI itself shipped 84,000 cases of cigarettes to the Syrian government's GOT organization, including 20,000 cases free of charge. We wonder if JTI can explain why they effectively gave 200m cigarettes, worth around US$15m to a government that will clearly sell them and pocket the change? Further, we wonder if JTI's parent, Japan Tobacco, can defend why it hasn't taken disciplinary action against its subsidiary's senior management for such actions? We're surprised that this case hasn't seen more light of day in the Japanese press. Probably because OCCRP is in Eastern Europe and because Japan Tobacco here in Tokyo is good at stonewalling. Unfortunately for Japan Tobacco, OCCRP has accumulated an impressive stack of apparently authentic documents to buttress its case, and although the EU's policing organization for the tobacco industry, OLAF, doesn't seem very effective, here in Tokyo, Japan Tobacco is opening itself up for a law suit relating to senior management being aware of potentially illegal activities and not doing anything about it. In our opinion, after speaking to OCCRP and confirming with Reynolds that the documentation is authentic, Japan Tobacco needs to appoint an investigative committee here in Tokyo to find out what its senior managers at JTI have been doing and potentially hiding. In Europe JTI has legal liability if the OCCRP allegations are true (see http://ec.europa.eu/anti_fraud/budget/cig_smug/2007_en.html). Further, the Tokyo Prosecutors office should also get involved, reviewing the many documents that OCCRP has, to see if any Japanese laws have been broken. At very least there should be some action against those directors responsible for management control of JTI. What the JTI case does suggest is that Olympus is just the tip of the iceberg, it's not a one-off situation. As Japanese firms which are used to keeping skeletons in the family closet start to go international, they need to understand that there are rules and people which they can't control and it is all too easy to have things wobble out of control. The JTI case will also confirm for many foreign shareholders that major Japanese firms are not serious about corporate governance, and that this will ultimately be a problem for the Japanese government. Indeed, the JTI case is much more a government problem than Olympus was, since the government owns 50% of Japan Tobacco. Given that point, we believe that the DPJ should tell Japan Tobacco's top management to get the problem sorted out before it potentially embarrasses the country even more than the Olympus case has done. ...The information janitors/ ***------------------------****-------------------------*** --------------------- Delta Air Lines --------------------- Earn more miles with Delta Air Lines? Co-branded Credit Cards and SkyMiles partners With Delta Air Lines? more than 100 SkyMiles partners, it?s so easy to earn more miles each time you travel, wine, dine, shop on or offline, or even book a hotel or rent a car. And never more so than when you use a Miles Co-branded Credit Card. Like to learn more about SkyMiles and begin enjoying its benefits? Then please click here now. Terms and Conditions: SkyMiles partner offers subject to the terms and conditions of each individual offer. See individual offers for details. All SkyMiles program rules apply to SkyMiles program membership, miles, offers, mile accrual, mile redemption and travel benefits. To review the rules, please visit Membership Guide & Program Rules. All SkyMiles partner offers are subject to the terms and conditions of each individual merchant. Offers, rules and participating merchants are subject to change without notice. Offers are void where prohibited by law. Other restrictions may apply. ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ NEWS -> TEPCO claims "ownership" of radiation belongs to others -> Whaling fleet subsidized from Tohoku funds -> Meiji baby powder turning into scandal -> Just 238,000 taxis -> Jetstar to significantly increase employees => TEPCO claims "ownership" of radiation belongs to others In a farcical court appearance, the lawyers for Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) have tried the novel approach of claiming that the radiation fall-out from its exploding reactors "belongs" to the prefectures and cities it landed on, rather than TEPCO itself. The claim was an attempt to disavow liability for the fall-out and subsequent remediation and compensation costs. Fortunately the court threw out the claim. ***Ed: Yup, OK, TEPCO has to pay out JPY20trn in compensation so it has the right to try to reduce its obligations -- but there is a moral limit and trying on an argument like this just makes TEPCO look even more despicable in the public's eyes. Do these guys have any commonsense?** (Source: TT commentary from thereporter.com, Dec 8, 2011) http://www.thereporter.com/opinion/ci_19495482 => Whaling fleet subsidized from Tohoku funds A storm of criticism has been unleashed abroad by a Fisheries Agency admission that JPY2.28bn is being used from the Tohoku Disaster Recovery funds to pay for this years whaling fleet expenses in the Southern Ocean. The use of the funds was defended as supplying work for ports where some of the whaling fleet is based, such as Ishinomaki. However, Sea Shepherd is saying that not only is the diversion immoral but that also donations from the public form part of the amount being used. ***Ed: Whether this last accusation is true or not is hard to prove, but there is no doubt that money going to the whaling fleet and its protection is clearly NOT going to the victims of the tsunami. (Source: TT commentary from independent.co.uk, Dec 9, 2011) http://ind.pn/taETpk => Meiji baby powder turning into scandal Not catching cesium in its Step baby milk powder is bad enough, but it has now emerged that Meiji Milk actually ignored customer concerns after a blogger announced independent test results on his website. The level of radiation is below government mandated levels, at 30.8 becquerels per kilogram, but since Step is used by mothers with babies 9 months and up, consumers are shocked to say the least about the presence of Cesium in the powder. ***Ed: This is really an unbelievable situation, and we're surprised it hasn't become a full-blown scandal yet -- we're guessing it will. Japanese mothers are highly sensitive to the health needs of their babies, as evidenced by the piles of water bottles even now in apartments around the city with young families. Our guess is that Meiji's Step powder sales will plummet after this.** (Source: TT commentary from japantimes.co.jp, Dec 11, 2011) http://www.japantimes.co.jp/text/nn20111211a1.html => Just 238,000 taxis Legislation passed in 2009 to consolidate the cab industry, coupled with an ongoing sluggish domestic economy have dealt a major blow to taxi firms, reducing the number of cabs in service from a peak of 400,000 cabs some years ago, to just 197,400 company cars and 41,200 private cars. This is the lowest number in 33 years. ***Ed: Darn cabs are getting expensive, too. JPY750 for just 2km -- who wants to be paying that kind of money when the trains are so much more reliable?** (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Dec 11, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20111210D10JFF04.htm => Jetstar to significantly increase employees Jetstar Japan seems to be doing well these days, announcing that it plans to hire up to 450 cabin crew in the next 3-5 years, coinciding with its expansion plans for Japan. Overall, the company says it will hire 1,500 employees in the next 5 years. This coincides with the firm's plans to start flying domestically in Japan from next year, and outbound international flights from 2013. (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Dec 9, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20111208D0812N03.htm NOTE: Broken links Many online news sources remove their articles after just a few days of posting them, thus breaking our links -- we apologize for the inconvenience. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CANDIDATE ROUND UP/VACANCIES => BiOS, a Division of the LINC Media group, is actively marketing the following positions for customers setting up or expanding in Japan, as well as other employers of bilinguals. ** HIGHLIGHTED POSITION BiOS is urgently looking for a Data Center Sales Associate with experience in IT sales at our client?s office in the Tokyo area. The candidate will be responsible for making sales proposals primarily to existing clients regarding the company?s global data centers and other IT outsourcing services. You will be part of a team of 3 to 5, and will be assigned one or several clients depending on the size of the client. You will also be responsible for negotiating proposals for network construction projects for clients whose systems the company operates. Due to the technical nature and demanding work environment, this position is suitable for someone with solid experience in sales within the IT industry. In addition, since this role requires direct negotiations with both Japanese and international clients, business-level communication skills in English and fluent Japanese will be required. Remuneration is JPY4m ? JPY7m depending on your experience and skill level. ** POSITIONS VACANT - Cabling Engineer, BiOS, JPY3.5M ? JPY4M - Service Delivery Manager, global IT co, JPY8M ? JPY10M - Desktop Support Engineer, global law firm, JPY4M ? JPY5M - Project Mgr, global LCD/ceramics maker, JPY 8M ? JPY11M - Helpdesk Support Engineer, BiOS, JPY4M ? JPY4.5M Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: tomohiro.kimura at biosjp.com ** BiOS Job Mail Every 2 weeks BiOS sends out a regular communication to its job seeking candidates, called BiOS Job Mail. Every edition carries a list of BiOS's current and most up-to-date vacancies, with each entry featuring a short job description and a direct link to the main entry on the BiOS home page. Regardless of whether you are unemployed and searching, thinking about a career change, or just curious to know if there is something out there that might suit you better, the BiOS Job Mail newsletter is an easy and convenient way for you to stay informed. If you would like to register for the BiOS Job Mail, or to find out more, please email kenji.sakota at biosjp.com. Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: tomohiro.kimura at biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- --------- BIOS - Bilingual IT Systems and Support --------- BiOS full-service IT solutions has a new service. Now the largest independently owned bilingual IT support company in Tokyo, BiOS offers some of the most competitive services available to multinationals whether large or small. Data Center staff and managed services, Help Desk, desktop, and network support. Server virtualization, cloud computing hosting and solutions, general software development. For more information on these and other SI and IT services, in English or Japanese: Phone: (03) 4588-2220, Email: solutions at biosjp.com Web: www.biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ UPCOMING EVENTS/ANNOUNCEMENTS No events for this week. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CORRECTIONS/FEEDBACK In this section we run comments and corrections submitted by readers. We encourage you to spot our mistakes and amplify our points, by email, to editors at terrie.com. *** In TT641 we delved into possible reasons for the Japanese permanent singles rate increasing as it has. => Reader comments: Excellent analysis of an important issue. One thought, I think it's important to look carefully at the big percentage citing "because of work and study commitments." In addition to people working hard to support themselves, I also think that there is an unfortunate trend in Japan in the past 10 years or so for companies to keep their staffs extremely lean, and to push them to work even harder. In other words, frankly I think that companies are to blame in part for this problem of people not dating and procreating, due to the way that they treat their employees. For example, I hear anecdotally many tales of employees at Japanese firms who work until late (e.g. 10 or 11 pm) every single night. These are not just isolated cases, but entire workplaces with large numbers of people where this is the norm, and sadly is considered normal. Of course this is not something new in Japan, but I do believe it's getting worse as pressure on companies is stronger than it was in the better days of the economy, and they try to do more with less. It always seems to be the employees who take the brunt of it. With this kind of work schedule, there is no time to meet anyone in after-work activities, and then employees spend the whole weekend trying to recover from the workweek. Even if one of these hard workers should have a girlfriend, she would probably dump them soon because they wouldn't see them much and they wouldn't be much fun to be around when they do. And if one of them is already married, not much time or energy for baby-making, or child-rearing. The karoshi cases that come up with depressing frequency also show examples of what some Japanese companies (amazingly) consider appropriate ways to manage their human resources. For every person who dies from such exhausting work schedules, there are undoubtedly scores more who are tired, depressed, and/or isolated from working so hard, and that as a result are unable to engage in dating or procreating. I see many companies in Japan putting up "work-life balance" posters but I think that more fundamental change is needed. Sadly, I don't see it coming anytime soon. *********************************************************** END SUBSCRIBERS: 8,294 members as of Dec 11, 2011 (We purge our list regularly.) +++ ABOUT US STAFF Written by: Terrie Lloyd (terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com) HELP: E-mail Terrie-request at mailman.japaninc.com with the word 'help' in the subject or body (don't include the quotes), and you will get back a message with instructions. FEEDBACK Send letters (Feedback, Inquiries & Information) to the editor to terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com. ADVERTISING INFORMATION For more information on advertising in this newsletter, Contact ads at japaninc.com. SUBSCRIBE Get Terrie's Take by giving your name and email address at http://www.japaninc.com/newsletters/free_sign_up, or go straight to Mailman at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ Copyright 2011 Japan Inc. Communications Inc. ----------------- Japan Inc opens up Japan ---------------- J at pan Inc is Japan's only independently published English- language business website. Authoritatively chronicling online the business trends in Japan, each posting brings you in-depth analysis of business, people and technology in the world's second largest economy. Visit www.japaninc.com for the best business insight on Japan available. ----------------------------------------------------------- -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From terrie at mailman.japaninc.com Mon Dec 19 08:49:58 2011 From: terrie at mailman.japaninc.com (Terrie's Take) Date: Mon, 19 Dec 2011 08:49:58 +0900 Subject: Terrie's Take 643 -- Nine Events That Defined Business in 2011, ebiz news from Japan Message-ID: * * * * * * * * * T E R R I E 'S T A K E * * * * * * * A weekly roundup of news & information from Terrie Lloyd. (http://www.terrie.com) General Edition Sunday, December 18, 2011, Issue No. 643 +++ INDEX - What's New -- Nine Events That Defined Business in 2011 - News -- Tankan turns negative - Candidate Roundup/Vacancies - Upcoming Events - Corrections/Feedback -- Dating paucity, a case of men or mice? - News Credits SUBSCRIBE to, UNSUBSCRIBE from Terrie's Take at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take, or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ --------- PBXL TOTAL TELEPHONY SOLUTION (TTS) ----------- PAYING TOO MUCH FOR MONTHLY CALLING CHARGES? PBXL?s Total Telephony Solution is the answer for unlimited domestic and international calling. With PBXL cloud telephony and TTS, enjoy a fully managed solution with zero variable costs. No office is too big or too small to save money. - Unlimited calling within Japan and 23 countries - Flat-rate calling charges based on number of phones - PBXL will review your current bills and save you money Check out our website today at http://en.pbxl.jp e-mail us at info at pbxl.jp or call us at 03-4550-2557 ----------- PBXL is BUSINESS COMMUNICATIONS -------------- +++ WHAT'S NEW One way to figure out likely trends in the future is to study the past. Today we pick nine events that we think have influenced Japan on a macro level and which will have repercussions and benefits for Japan for years to come. January -- Bahamas tax treaty signed Japan marked an important move towards homologating its tax and tax detection system with the rest of the world, by signing a tax information treaty with the Bahamas, following on from similar agreements with the Caymans and Bermuda. Probably the first real application of this type of treaty will be the Olympus laundering of US$680m+ through the Caymans in 2008. Should be interesting to see the evidence once this all goes to court. As a counterpoint, even as this treaty was being signed, giving the Tax Office much more power to track down illicit money, a Supreme Court ruling found in favor of the son of money-lender Yasuo Takefuji, when it decided he would be non-taxable for a 3-year period of residence in Hong Kong. He was charged JPY133bn on gift taxes and penalties after the Tax Office said he was living in HK just to dodge paying the taxes in Japan. February -- India-Japan trade deal (a TPP precursor) Japan is busy shoring up its non-China relations around Asia, and next to China, the economy that really matters for Japan is India. Thus the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) signed in February was an important breakthrough after 5 years of negotiations. For India the agreement will open up the Japanese market for generic drugs, software, and possibly agricultural items, while for Japan it opens up the financial services sector, manufacturing, and construction. The deal will remove trade tariffs on 94% of all goods over the next ten years, and is expected to increase bilateral trade between the countries by as much as US$25bn, up from US$10.3bn presently. This deal has been one of the turning points of acceptance by the Japanese towards mutually beneficial trade agreements, and bodes well for their participation in the upcoming TPP talks. March -- Tohoku Earthquake March 11th, 2011, will be etched in the memories of tens of millions of people here in Japan and around the world, not only for the horrific tsunami after a Magnitude 9.0 earthquake off the coast of Tohoku, which caused the deaths of at least 19,000 (accounted for and missing), and damage of around US$235bn (World Bank estimate). All we can say is thank God it didn't hit Tokyo head on. If you haven't been up to Tohoku to see the damage for yourself, then you can see it here, on Google. Lots of before and after imagery. http://www.miraikioku.com/streetview/en/?ll=38.419065,141.298584&h=74&p=-7&z=0 While the direct damage caused by the tsunami has been massive, the larger damage is likely to be the hits on the economy caused by the resulting explosions and meltdowns of reactors as the Daiichi power plant at Fukushima. Not only has the resulting radiation scare been almost solely responsible for a 50% drop in tourism (US$130bn this year alone), but the power shortages during summer and later this winter, and the resulting drop in productivity that those will have caused. Both events will have a lasting negative effect on the economy. But there could well be a silver lining on this cloud, in that the nuclear threat has made people much more aware of their health and their life priorities. Indeed, there has been a remarkable increase in the number of people wanting to start working the land as farmers -- so maybe the idea that farming is dying out in Japan is not a given after all. [Continued below...] -- NAGAMINE & MISHIMA - Securing Your Success in Japan --- Starting a new company in Japan? Looking to streamline your current operations? The team of bilingual experts at Nagamine & Mishima is able to provide high quality accounting, payroll and tax services that both exceed expectations and fit your budget. Our services help customers improve their operations and bottom line results. To find out more about our services and how we can help your business in Japan succeed, please visit our website www.nagamine-mishima.com or reach us directly by telephone at 03-3581-1975 or by email at info at nagamine-mishima.com. ---------- YOUR BOTTOM LINE IS OUR TOP PRIORITY------------ [...Article continues] June -- Tainted milk scandal and food safety In the aftermath of Fukushima power plant explosions, not much happened during April and early May. However, in late May and June, it became obvious that there was serious and major fall-out of Cesium and (as we have more recently found out), Neptunium-239 and other radioactive particles. The cesium contamination was initially ignored by the authorities, then it was discovered after citizen-paid radiation testing revealed that milk from Fukushima was contaminated and the product was being distributed all across the nation by being mixed with normal product from other regions. This created an uproar which continues today. In July it emerged that the meat from at least 600 cattle were also sold, although they were contaminated with cesium above the government limits. July -- AirAsia and ANA Even without the earthquake, 2011 was shaping up to be a miserable year for many Japanese workers, since their factory jobs have been cut dramatically as local manufacturing succumbs to price competition from Chinese exports. One of the few alternative industries that such workers can move to is tourism -- especially since it is service oriented and easy to "program". Of course the radiation from the Daiichi power plant has scared away many, but we have a feeling that 2012 will be a much better year as the clean up continues. A major enabler to the recovery of tourism is the arrival of Low-cost Carriers (LCC's), and Asia's largest operator, Malaysia's AirAsia, announced in July that it would tie-up with ANA and start flying in 2013 in Japan. The company plans to start operating domestic routes, and its CEO mentioned a JPY2,500 air fare from Tokyo to Osaka as being a goal. AirAsia will shortly be joined by Jetstar, which also intends to start flying domestic routes in 2012 and internationally from Japan by 2013. August -- Setsuden Although just a memory now we're in the grip of winter, July-August were ugly months for most of the working population of Japan. In the aftermath of the meltdowns at Fukushima, many of Japan's other nuclear power plants have also been closed down, reducing the nuclear contribution of 30% of the nation's power to 1/3 of that amount. The way the power reductions were achieved were through a government campaign called "Setsuden" (Power Savings), which set a target to reduce power consumption by as much as 20%. This involved requiring large companies to engage in a variety of measures including working weekends and 4-day work weeks. As a result, many of us sweated away in temperatures of 28 degrees or higher (depending on your proximity to a window). Although there were no real mandatory targets for small firms and households, everyone got the message, and by individual and group action, the nation beat the power savings targets by a wide margin. It was an amazing thing to see, and now (December 2011), although there are only 7 of Japan's 54 reactors online, there are still no power supply problems of note. That situation may change this winter, but despite this possibility the government is requesting just a 10% savings target, showing how relaxed they are about the situation. of course, we're not looking forward to next summer. Something tells us that Setsuden is here to stay for a while...! October -- Olympus Scandal Breaks We don't have much to say about Olympus that hasn't been said already. The scandal broke early October, after the Olympus board fired its first foreign president and CEO, Michael Woodford. They did so because he had the audacity to demand the resignation of the Chairman who hired him, Tsuyoshi Kikukawa, and other board members. It turns out that shortly after becoming the president, Woodford found out that Olympus had paid huge and suspicious advisory fees for its 2008 M&A of a British firm called Gyrus. In addition, he uncovered almost a US$1bn of 2006-2007 asset purchases which were quickly and quietly written off the following year, and which reportedly involved anti-social elements. The Olympus scandal has had major repercussions on the reputation of Japanese firms vis-a-vis foreign shareholders -- so much so that even the Japanese PM, Yoshihiko Noda, felt compelled to comment on the situation and assure investors that Olympus is just a one-off case. We're not so sure of that point, but at least the government does seem serious about tightening up its hither-to lax M&A laws. October was also a month in which Japan's one successful software sector, that of online gaming, saw one of its leaders make a smart and high-value purchase of a foreign competitor. DeNA paid US$400m for US-based iphone social gaming firm Ngmoco. We see other online gaming firms following in DeNA's footsteps, as online mobile gaming sweeps the world in the next couple of years. November -- Kirin Schincariol Group M&A The year ends as it started, with a major Japanese M&A hitting the headlines. One of the more active sectors has been beverages, and Kirin announced in August that it was seeking to buy a controlling share of Brazilian drinks firm Schincariol for JPY105bn. They didn't count on significant domestic (Brazilian minor shareholder) objections to the deal, though, and it took them another 3 months to make things stick. Kirin will now control 11% of the Brazilian beverages market, as Schincariol is that nation's second largest beverages firm. Kirin is betting that its expertise in premium drinks and non-alcoholic drinks will allow it to compete and take market share from the leader in the market, AmBev. [Continued below...] ----------------- DESPERATELY SEEKING DONORS --------------- CASH AND BONE MARROW DONORS NEEDED Aidan, a British resident in Japan, needs a bone marrow transplant. It?s his only hope of beating leukemia. Because of his ethnicity, no donors were found in Japan. He is no longer eligible for UK treatment. Only a worldwide search, not covered by Japanese National Health Insurance, offers hope. Aidan needs at least JPY3,500,000. He has been unable to work and without income since February 2011. Please donate what you can. Please become a bone marrow donor. You could save a life. Please spread the word. Please visit: http://saveaidan.org/ ----------------------------------------------------------- [...Article continues] What makes this a stand-out event for us for 2011 is that Kirin has been engaged in a series of rapid-fire acquisitions over the last 3 years, and has had enough time to see some of its deals "go south", requiring repair and change of control. This has been the case with Kirin's Lion Nathan acquisition from 2007, which apparently is not going so well. The company is now being tested as to its ability to work on a global level to actively manage and drive its empire. If it succeeds, then it can look with confidence to pulling off more M&As next year on the back of the high yen, and move up the ranks of major global players. Currently it is the 14th largest food and beverage firm in the world, after Heineken. ************** Thanks for reading Terrie's Take for 2011. This has been a really special year for us, as we reinvented ourselves after the earthquake and the succeeding slump in the economy. Our group of media businesses took particularly hard knocks due to the fact that some of our clients and readers were amongst those choosing to leave Japan after the quake. We're happy to say, though, that the exodus seems to have leveled out and we look forward to 2012 being a year of recovery. One of our strategies for next year is to help Japan recover as a place to live and do business for foreigners, by launching new businesses in online travel and real estate. Readers will already know that we launched www.japantourist.jp at the beginning of November, and already we are getting great traction -- as evidenced by 10-15 new contributors a week signing up to help us document just what a great place Japan is to visit and live in. At this rate, we expect that Japantourist.jp will become Japan's largest commercial English-language travel website by volume (of content) by February next year. You can help us achieve that goal by visiting the site, "liking" it on Facebook (you'll see the "like" button in the top right hand corner) -- and thus spreading awareness of the site. It's easy to do... www.japantourist.jp Our real estate website, www.metrohomes.jp, should also be up and running early this coming week. We had intended to launch this last week, but with 10,000+ listings on the site from a number of partners, there are lots of moving parts to coordinate, and we want to make sure that we get it right. This is our last posting for this year, and we will take two of our four weeks off a year, to enjoy a bit of time with the family. We will be back in your mail box on January 8th, 2012. Merry Christmas everyone, and if you don't celebrate Christmas, well then, Happy Holidays and New Year...! Oh, and be sure to look at the reader theory at the bottom of this issue, as to why there are so many Japanese without partners. Hint: relates to an interesting mouse experiment. ...The information janitors/ ***------------------------****-------------------------*** --------------------- Delta Air Lines --------------------- Earn more miles with Delta Air Lines? Co-branded Credit Cards and SkyMiles partners With Delta Air Lines? more than 100 SkyMiles partners, it?s so easy to earn more miles each time you travel, wine, dine, shop on or offline, or even book a hotel or rent a car. And never more so than when you use a Miles Co-branded Credit Card. Like to learn more about SkyMiles and begin enjoying its benefits? http://www.delta.com/skymiles/ways_to_get_miles/index.jsp Terms and Conditions: SkyMiles partner offers subject to the terms and conditions of each individual offer. See individual offers for details. All SkyMiles program rules apply to SkyMiles program membership, miles, offers, mile accrual, mile redemption and travel benefits. To review the rules, please visit Membership Guide & Program Rules. All SkyMiles partner offers are subject to the terms and conditions of each individual merchant. Offers, rules and participating merchants are subject to change without notice. Offers are void where prohibited by law. Other restrictions may apply. Other useful links: http://skymilesoffers.delta.com/index.php http://skymilesoffers.delta.com/intl_credit_card_partners.php#ASIASky http://www.delta.com/skymiles/about_skymiles/membership_guide_program/index.jsp www.delta.com ----------------------------------------------------------- +++ NEWS - Talent agency looks to go private again - Fujifilm to buy US ultrasound company - Data shows 48% drop in rents since 2008 - Young Japanese don't trust officials or media - Tankan survey turns negative -> Talent agency looks to go private again Japan's leading talent agency, Horipro has announced that management will try to buyout the business and take the company private. In an interesting interview with the Nikkei, the company, which manages many of the nation's leading acts, says that because of the declining domestic market it has little option but to go abroad for future growth -- and that this will require some tough investment decisions that investors may not like. ***Ed: The fact is that some companies are just not made for public listing, and talent agencies are probably one of them. The nature of the business means that they suffer in slow markets and make prodigious amounts of money in heated ones -- not the steady returns that most investors are looking for.** (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Dec 16, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20111217D1612A18.htm -> Fujifilm to buy US ultrasound company Imaging company Fujifilm Holdings says that it will buy US portable ultrasound devices maker SonoSite, for US$995m, a massive 99 times the US firm's earnings last year. Despite the huge price, Fujifilm obviously feels that SonoSite's ultrasound customer network in over 100 countries globally (for a 37% overall market share) makes the purchase worthwhile. ***Ed: Maybe they have a lot of patents?** (Source: TT commentary from bloomberg.com, Dec 15, 2011) http://bloom.bg/v2ABmO -> Data shows 48% drop in rents since 2008 If proof was needed that office rents are getting cheaper, a report released by Sanko Estate should provide it. The firm says that Shinjuku rents have fallen by a massive 48% since January 2008, and those in Shibuya by 45%. The average rent in Shinjuku at the end of November 2011 was JPY16,356/tsubo (3.3 sq. m.). Rents in Chiyoda-ku have fallen by 34% and in Minato-ku by 31%. The data also shows that vacancy rates rose by 0.03%, to 5.75%, a return to the trend of increasing vacancies. ***Ed: Our guess is that this situation will persist into 2012, as export firms (the only ones with money to invest at present) wait and see what happens to the Eurozone crisis before embarking on any more manpower in Tokyo.** (Source: TT commentary from e.nikkei.com, Dec 17, 2011) http://e.nikkei.com/e/ac/tnks/Nni20111216D1612N03.htm -> Young Japanese don't trust officials or media An article on the LA Times posits that when it comes to radiation information, young Japanese are turning away from official announcements and traditional media and placing their trust in Internet blogs and web-based news channels. The paper points out that an online news show called Our Planet TV was one of the first to question the real situation with radiation contamination about the Fukushima power plant, and with days its registered audience soared from just 1,000 people to over 100,000. Likewise, a Tokyo University blogger saw his Twitter following jump from 3,000 to 150,000 after he started tweeting foreign news reports about radiation from Fukushima. ***Ed: Certainly people don't trust government sources for good reason -- almost every week there is evidence of a cover-up or at best "Paternal information restrictions" from one government agency or another. This week it is the refusal of the board governing school lunches in greater Tokyo refusing to release radiation readings for milk distributed with the lunches -- which the kids are forced to consume...!** (Source: TT commentary from LA Times, Dec 18, 2011) http://lat.ms/tobjQv -> Tankan survey turns negative Large manufacturers appear to have become pessimistic about the direction of the economy over the next quarter, as the Bank of Japan's Tankan survey shows a score of -4, versus a score of +2 in September. Analysts say that the main reasons for the pessimism are the high yen and the European debt crisis. The survey is taken amongst 4,000 large firms, most of whom are involved in export or operating international businesses and which are sensitive to the high yen. ***Ed: The feeling amongst many senior managers is that if the Eurozone crisis gets out of hand, this will have a big knock-on effect on the USA, and that will directly impact Japan, which otherwise has limited exposure to Europe.** (Source: TT commentary from ft.com, Dec 15, 2011) http://on.ft.com/v83Yiv NOTE: Broken links Many online news sources remove their articles after just a few days of posting them, thus breaking our links -- we apologize for the inconvenience. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CANDIDATE ROUND UP/VACANCIES => BiOS, a Division of the LINC Media group, is actively marketing the following positions for customers setting up or expanding in Japan, as well as other employers of bilinguals. ** HIGHLIGHTED POSITION BiOS is urgently looking for a Project Manager with experience in managing a technical engineering team of network system engineers, as well as undertaking design and architecting work at our client?s office in the Osaka area. The candidate will be responsible for managing accounts of the client for network and voice communications services, proposing project scopes, updating progress, explaining new services, etc., as well as communicating with the internal technical team so that they can provide the technical services thus gleaned from the clients. You will also be responsible for creating and managing documents about the projects that need to be presented to C-level management. Due to the technical nature and demanding work environment, this position is suitable for someone with solid experience in managing projects related to network/VoIP related systems and Japanese clients. In addition, since this role requires direct coordination with Japanese clients and the company?s international headquarters personnel, business-level communication skills in English and fluency in Japanese will be required. Remuneration is JPY7m ? JPY8m depending on your experience and skill level. ** POSITIONS VACANT - Data Center Sales Staff, global IT co, JPY4M ? JPY7M - Project Mgr, global LCD/ceramics maker, JPY8M ? JPY11M - Desktop Support Engineer, global law firm, JPY4M ? JPY5M - Helpdesk Support Engr, global telco, JPY3.5M ? JPY4.5M - Global Network Operator, Japanese IT co, JPY3M ? JPY3.5M Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: tomohiro.kimura at biosjp.com ** BiOS Job Mail Every 2 weeks BiOS sends out a regular communication to its job seeking candidates, called BiOS Job Mail. Every edition carries a list of BiOS's current and most up-to-date vacancies, with each entry featuring a short job description and a direct link to the main entry on the BiOS home page. Regardless of whether you are unemployed and searching, thinking about a career change, or just curious to know if there is something out there that might suit you better, the BiOS Job Mail newsletter is an easy and convenient way for you to stay informed. If you would like to register for the BiOS Job Mail, or to find out more, please email kenji.sakota at biosjp.com. Interested individuals may e-mail resumes to: tomohiro.kimura at biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- --------- BIOS - Bilingual IT Systems and Support --------- BiOS full-service IT solutions has a new service. Now the largest independently owned bilingual IT support company in Tokyo, BiOS offers some of the most competitive services available to multinationals whether large or small. Data Center staff and managed services, Help Desk, desktop, and network support. Server virtualization, cloud computing hosting and solutions, general software development. For more information on these and other SI and IT services, in English or Japanese: Phone: (03) 4588-2220, Email: solutions at biosjp.com Web: www.biosjp.com ----------------------------------------------------------- ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ UPCOMING EVENTS/ANNOUNCEMENTS No events for this week. ***------------------------****-------------------------*** +++ CORRECTIONS/FEEDBACK In this section we run comments and corrections submitted by readers. We encourage you to spot our mistakes and amplify our points, by email, to editors at terrie.com. *** In TT641 we delved into possible reasons for the Japanese permanent singles rate increasing as it has. This reader has a completely novel and compelling reason for the emergence of male "herbivores" in Japan. => Reader comments: This is in response to your interesting article in TT 641 about the current aversion of so many Japanese to dating and mating. Without a doubt, there are an abundance of reasons for this, many of them interlocking and reinforcing each other, thus making it difficult or impossible to establish relative importance or even cause from effect. However, here is a theory for you: whatever the explanations, they are all proximate reasons. In other words, they are simply manifestations of a deeper, or "ultimate" reason. And this reason or explanation is simple: Japan has too many people. Japan's population was perfectly stable, there therefore by definition sustainable given its complete isolation, for the roughly 300 years of the Edo Period. However, at about 30 million over these centuries, this was still a high density by any standard then or since. By way of comparison, Japan today has 336 people per square kilometer. Since its population now is four times that of the Edo period, during the Edo period Japan's density was about 84. The world average TODAY is around 50 (meaning that the world average until about 100 years ago, when the population began to explode, was approximately 12). Compared with Japan's current 336, density today is 32 in the U.S., 21 in Sweden, and 3 in Canada and Australia. One of the most enduring if not endearing lessons of modern biology is the late 1960's experiment with a "utopian" mouse population. Summary courtesy of Wiki: "Four pairs of mice were given unlimited food, water, and nesting material. There were no predators. The only limit was space. The population grew rapidly, doubling every 55 days, reaching 620 by Day 315. Then population growth dropped markedly. Between Day 315 and Day 600 was a breakdown in social behavior. The last surviving birth was on Day 600. Changes in behavior included the inability of dominant males to maintain defense of territory and females, aggressive behavior of females, and passivity of non-dominant males. After Day 600 the females ceased to reproduce, and their male counterparts withdrew completely, never engaging in courtship. They ate, drank, slept, and groomed themselves - all solitary pursuits. Sleek, healthy coats and an absence of scars characterized these males. They were dubbed 'the beautiful ones'." Thumbs up if you are in Japan and any of this sounds familiar. Growing up in the U.S., I remember a TV commercial with the punchline: "It's not nice to fool Mother Nature." Just maybe, there is a natural maximum population that a society, area, country, or planet can tolerate before Mother Nature whips out the ruler. Our planet, with Japan an example, may be automatically enforcing a return to more sustainable levels of population using methods and mechanisms that are too subtle or complex for humans to understand -- at least for now. If so, maybe we should accept or even embrace the changes; I'd bet money that Mother Nature keeps killer epidemics in her bag of tricks -- lest we forget, the Black Death in the 14th century killed an estimated one-third of the entire human population from India to Iceland. Compared to that, more aggressive females and non-dominant males eating, drinking, sleeping, and grooming themselves in solitary doesn't seem quite so bad. *********************************************************** END SUBSCRIBERS: 8,328 members as of Dec 18, 2011 (We purge our list regularly.) +++ ABOUT US STAFF Written by: Terrie Lloyd (terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com) HELP: E-mail Terrie-request at mailman.japaninc.com with the word 'help' in the subject or body (don't include the quotes), and you will get back a message with instructions. FEEDBACK Send letters (Feedback, Inquiries & Information) to the editor to terrie.lloyd at japaninc.com. ADVERTISING INFORMATION For more information on advertising in this newsletter, Contact ads at japaninc.com. SUBSCRIBE Get Terrie's Take by giving your name and email address at http://www.japaninc.com/newsletters/free_sign_up, or go straight to Mailman at: http://mailman.japaninc.com/mailman/listinfo/terrie BACK ISSUES http://www.japaninc.com/terries_take or, http://mailman.japaninc.com/pipermail/terrie/ Copyright 2011 Japan Inc. Communications Inc. ----------------- Japan Inc opens up Japan ---------------- J at pan Inc is Japan's only independently published English- language business website. Authoritatively chronicling online the business trends in Japan, each posting brings you in-depth analysis of business, people and technology in the world's second largest economy. Visit www.japaninc.com for the best business insight on Japan available. ----------------------------------------------------------- -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: