"Listening is easy; listening intently is leadership."
"In Japan, trust isn't a KPI — it's earned through presence, patience, and predictable behaviour."
"Leaders here must be gatekeepers of governance and ambassadors for people, culture, and brand."
"Don't copy-paste playbooks; calibrate the boss, context, and cadence."
"Win hearts first, then heads — only then will ideas and decisions truly flow."
Loïc Pecondon-Lacroix is President and Country Holding Officer (CHO) of ABB Japan, responsible for governance, compliance, and the enabling infrastructure that keeps ABB's Japan entities operating within law, regulation, and internal policy. A French national educated primarily in sales, he built his career as a business controller and CFO across local, regional, and global roles, developing a reputation for process discipline and decision support. Before ABB, he spent a decade in the automotive sector, including senior roles at German powerhouse Mahle, where he moved between France, Germany, China, and Japan. His first Japan posting was as a general manager in the automotive industry; his second brought him back to Tokyo, where — after his spouse's executive opportunity catalysed the move — he was recruited in-market by ABB directly into the CHO role.
What makes leadership in Japan unique?
Japan is a high-context, consensus-first environment. Leaders must prioritise nemawashi before ringi-sho, invest in psychological safety, and value presence over performative activity. Engagement is not a survey score but an accumulation of trust signalled by consistent behaviour, calibrated communication, and respect for cadence and etiquette. Decision intelligence here blends informal alignment with formal governance so progress sticks rather than bounces.
Why do global executives struggle?
Many arrive with "fix it fast" mandates, underestimate uncertainty avoidance, and over-rely on imported playbooks. They communicate problems upward without solutions and fail to "manage the boss" — i.e., calibrate global expectations to local timeframes. Skipping nemawashi, they trigger resistance, burn political capital, and misread engagement metrics that don't map neatly across cultures.
Is Japan truly risk-averse?
It's less risk-averse than uncertainty-averse. Leaders can reduce uncertainty with clearer problem framing, milestones, and prototypes, thereby enabling motion without violating safety and quality norms. The practical move is to de-risk through staged decisions, transparent governance, and strong internal controls — an approach especially congruent with ABB's integrity and compliance culture.
What leadership style actually works?
Begin with humility and intense listening, then coach. Win hearts before heads, model the behaviours you seek, and make middle managers masters of feedback and retention. Use direct channels (town halls, internal social platforms) to complement cascades. Choose battles, protect cadence, and be explicit about "why this, why now." Influence beats authority in matrix settings; patience beats bravado.
How can technology help?
Internal communities and collaboration platforms create lateral flow so ideas don't stall under middle-management "concrete." Analytics can enrich decision intelligence by signalling hotspots in retention and development. In ABB's domain, digital twins and automation are metaphors for leadership too: simulate options, align stakeholders, then execute with control plans that keep quality and compliance intact.
Does language proficiency matter?
Fluency helps but isn't decisive. Context literacy — reading air, watching body language, knowing relationship histories — often yields more truth than words alone. Leaders can operate in English while respecting Japanese protocols, provided they invest in nemawashi, maintain constancy, and avoid breaking trust with premature declarations or unilateral moves.
What's the ultimate leadership lesson?
"Win hearts, then heads." Authenticity tempered with empathy, disciplined listening, and careful boss-calibration turns culture from obstacle to engine. When people feel safe and seen, they move — applying for stretch roles, sharing ideas, and compounding organisational capability over long cycles.
Author Credentials
Dr. Greg Story, Ph.D. in Japanese Decision-Making, is President of Dale Carnegie Tokyo Training and Adjunct Professor at Griffith University. He is a two-time winner of the Dale Carnegie "One Carnegie Award" (2018, 2021) and recipient of the Griffith University Business School Outstanding Alumnus Award (2012). As a Dale Carnegie Master Trainer, Greg is certified to deliver globally across all leadership, communication, sales, and presentation programs, including Leadership Training for Results.
He has written several books, including three best-sellers — Japan Business Mastery, Japan Sales Mastery, and Japan Presentations Mastery — along with Japan Leadership Mastery and How to Stop Wasting Money on Training. His works have also been translated into Japanese, including Za Eigyō (ザ営業), Purezen no Tatsujin (プレゼンの達人), Torēningu de Okane o Muda ni Suru no wa Yamemashō (トレーニングでお金を無駄にするのはやめましょう), and Gendaiban "Hito o Ugokasu" Rīdā (現代版「人を動かす」リーダー).
In addition to his books, Greg publishes daily blogs on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter, offering practical insights on leadership, communication, and Japanese business culture. He is also the host of six weekly podcasts, including The Leadership Japan Series, The Sales Japan Series, The Presentations Japan Series, Japan Business Mastery, and Japan's Top Business Interviews. On YouTube, he produces three weekly shows — The Cutting Edge Japan Business Show, Japan Business Mastery, and Japan's Top Business Interviews — which have become leading resources for executives seeking strategies for success in Japan.
