254 Guillaume Hansali- Country Head Keywords Studios

254 Guillaume Hansali- Country Head Keywords Studios

Author: Dr. Greg Story June 28, 2025 Duration: 1:36:16
  • "Trust, for me, is the ability to predict someone's behaviour—consistency builds that predictability."
  • "Excellence isn't the outcome—it's the rigour of the process, even when the result is uncertain."
  • "You can't sell yourself forever; you have to build trust in the company, not just the founder."
  • "Being vulnerable as a leader unlocks trust—it gives others permission to be real too."
  • "Culture is just norms and heuristics—you shape it by consistently rewarding the right behaviours."

Previously Guillaume was the Founder and Managing Director of Wizcorp; Web Development Consultant Helmut; System Engineer, Consultant Lapyx System.

He has a Master of Science in Computer Science from Francois Rabelais University

Guillaume approaches leadership as a dynamic journey shaped by intuition, experimentation, and personal growth. His early experience of founding a startup in Japan, with no funding and little knowledge of business basics, forged a deep resilience and humility. Over time, he transitioned from instinct-driven decisions to more intentional leadership, grounded in reflection and learning. He discovered that leadership at different company sizes requires entirely different approaches—whereas in a small team the leader is the culture, in larger organisations it's about embedding values and structures that scale.

At the heart of his leadership philosophy is trust, which he defines as the ability to predict behaviour. He believes consistency—especially in mood and decisions—fosters trust. Vulnerability plays a critical role too. Initially reluctant to show weakness, he gradually realized that openly admitting what he didn't know allowed his team to connect more deeply with him, and gave them permission to do the same. This emotional openness, he observed, significantly strengthens engagement and authenticity.

Guillaume emphasizes the importance of separating the self from the business. Early in his career, he equated client service with personal commitment, sometimes undermining internal cohesion. He later recognized the need to build institutional trust in the company, not just in himself. This meant creating repeatable processes, articulating core values, and ensuring every team member could represent the company with consistency and integrity.

He also champions a culture of structured creativity, particularly in high-risk industries like gaming. He views "fun" as an emergent property that can't be predicted or engineered, but must be tested rigorously. Prototypes, constraints, and deliberate iteration are key to fostering innovation while managing risk. Organizational learning, in his view, should focus less on replicating past outcomes and more on documenting and improving the decision-making process.

Leading in Japan, Guillaume sees language and cultural fluency not as optional, but essential for trust and influence. He stresses the need to deeply understand local norms and communicate in ways that resonate. For multicultural teams, he believes the leader's job is to define shared behavioural expectations clearly, without relying on implicit cultural assumptions. Ultimately, Guillaume sees leadership as a journey of self-awareness, consistent example, intentional culture-shaping, and the courage to learn publicly.

 


Hosted by Dr. Greg Story, Japan's Top Business Interviews Podcast By Dale Carnegie Training Tokyo Japan offers a direct line to the experiences and strategies of executives operating within one of the world's most distinct economies. Each conversation moves beyond theory, focusing on the practical realities of management and leadership as told by those doing the work. You'll hear from a diverse roster of guests, from seasoned leaders at large corporations to innovative founders of growing ventures, all sharing their firsthand accounts of navigating Japan's unique business culture. This podcast provides valuable context on everything from building effective teams and driving organizational change to understanding the nuances of negotiation and customer relations in this market. Whether you're currently leading a team in Japan, planning to expand your business there, or simply curious about how professional success is achieved in a different cultural framework, these interviews deliver grounded insights. Tune in for authentic discussions that cut through the clichés, offering a clearer picture of what it truly takes to succeed. The depth and variety of perspectives make this series a consistently useful resource for anyone engaged with the business landscape in Japan.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 100

Japan's Top Business Interviews Podcast By Dale Carnegie Training Tokyo Japan
Podcast Episodes
264 Richard Cohen, Founder Village Cellars [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 56:28
"If you feel you should say something, shut up for a little while and work out what's going on." "Leadership starts with humility, respect, and the ability to listen to people." "Always avoid saying, 'I'm bringing this i…
263 Glen Argyle, President Baxter Japan [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 59:15
"Leadership is the ability to bring people to somewhere they didn't think they could go." "If you want to do co-creation, you have to do co-creation—consistently. You can't just turn it on and off." "Don't focus only on…
262 Hideo Goto, President Schick Japan [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:09:15
"Walk the talk is the most powerful way to build trust." "Beauty grooming didn't exist—it was a new word to reflect a new purpose." "People didn't see themselves in the beauty industry until they started to look in the m…
261 Elio Orsara, Founder Elios Locanda Italiano [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:28:46
1. "If my motivation is to make the best product, the money will follow as a consequence." 2. "A leader must give up ego and put the right people in the right place—even if it risks their seat." 3. "You have to read the…
260 Chris Mohler, CEO Gap Asia [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:11:41
"You can ask four thousand people to adjust to you, or you can adjust to them." "If we want the stores to be successful, they need to feel heard—because their success is our success." "When I tried to dictate ideas top-d…
259 Kasper Mejlvang, President Novo Nordisk Pharma Japan [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:03:06
"Most of any leader's job is change management—setting a vision people buy into and aligning them behind it." "I view the organisation as an inverted triangle—the frontline is at the top, and we serve them." "You should…
258 Duncan Harrison, Managing Director, JAC International [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 46:01
"In Japan, if you want performance, you need ultra-clear expectations—people need to know the goal." "Building trust means creating a safe environment where it's okay to make mistakes." "Consensus-building is not optiona…
257 Yvette Pang, CEO International Logistics Company [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:02:46
"We walk the talk—not talk the talk." "Expect the unexpected—Japan will challenge every assumption you bring." "The language we use programs our mindset—'we' means we're in it together." "Creating little leaders is more…
256 Eiichiro Onozawa CEO Savills Japan [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:02:46
"You have to crystallize the objective—what the goal is, and how we can get there." "I treat differences as differences—not as superior or inferior." "If people are good at what they do, all I need to do is be a facilita…
255 Duncan Macintyre Managing Director CBRE Asia Pacific [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 56:05
· You've got to create the right environment so people can be successful and want to stay." · "In Japan, trust takes longer to earn—but once you have it, it doesn't disappear." · "You can't just come in and declare the s…