The FocusCore Podcast

In this FocusCore Podcast episode, host David Sweet interviews Naomi Mano, Founder of Luxurique and Chairperson of the Japan MICE Association, a US-born Japanese national with over 30 years of experience in marketing, branding, and hospitality. Naomi explains why she left corporate roles at IBM and Fidelity to build her own company, and what it took to launch a luxury business in Japan as a woman entrepreneur in 2007. She shares her view that entrepreneurs need grit, mental strength, and physical stamina, and describes how she leads a team of nearly 50 by managing her own reactions and adapting how she communicates with each person. They discuss building trust with traditional artisans and turning personal relationships into corporate ones, serving ultra high net worth clients, and pivoting during COVID by building a keyword-based travel platform with government grants. Naomi closes with her advice on defining success by your own values and never giving up on your vision.The 2026 FocusCore Salary Guide is here: 2026 Salary GuideIn this episode you will hear:Why Naomi left corporate life to build her own company in JapanWhat entrepreneurs really need: grit, mental strength, and physical staminaHow to lead a growing team by managing your own reactionsHow to turn personal trust into lasting corporate relationships in JapanHow Luxurique pivoted during COVID with government grantsWhy success should be defined on your own termsAbout Naomi:Naomi is a US-born Japanese national with over 30 years of experience in marketing, branding, and hospitality. She began her career at IBM and contributed to the Nagano Olympic Marketing Committee, before taking on regional marketing roles across Asia Pacific. Her background gives her strong insight into Japanese culture and how to make it accessible to international visitors.In 2007, she launched and led the Japan operations for Quintessentially, a global luxury lifestyle service provider. She later founded Luxurique in 2014 to create high-end cultural experiences, events and to support the growth of luxury inbound tourism in Japan, while also advising organizations and governments on strategies targeting high-net-worth travelers.Naomi is the author of Omotenashi no Genso (Illusion of Hospitality), chairperson of the Japan MICE Association, and a doctoral candidate at Keio University researching sustainable tourism. She is widely recognized as an industry thought leader, regularly speaking at major travel events and featured in leading international publications.Connect with Naomi Mano:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/naomi-mano-6444a65/?isSelfProfile=falseLuxurique: https://www.luxurique.com/Connect with David Sweet:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/drdavidsweet/Twitter: https://twitter.com/focuscorejpFacebook: :https://www.facebook.com/focuscoreasiaInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/focuscorejp/Website: https://www.japan.focuscoregroup.com/This podcast was proudly produced by Lisa Yasuda.“Doin’ the Uptown Lowdown,” used by permission of Christopher Davis-Shannon. To find out more, check out www.thetinman.co. Support independent musicians and artists.

In this FocusCore Podcast episode, host David Sweet interviews Lars Schandorff, Senior Director of People & Talent for APAC Supply Chain with a global American company. With over 17 years of experience spanning Denmark, Singapore, Dubai, and Japan, Lars has built talent strategies for organizations including British American Tobacco, Seadrill, and Maersk, from managing an $8 billion global portfolio to building the entire talent ecosystem for a $1 billion greenfield factory in Japan. Lars and David discuss how to cultivate a sustainable Japan executive bench instead of relying on expats indefinitely, why executive presence looks different depending on culture, how to keep leadership teams stable through high-stakes transformation, why speaking Japanese is as much about respect as communication, what an "AI native" organization actually looks like in Japan, and what Lars sees as Japan's biggest talent challenge over the next five years.The 2026 FocusCore Salary Guide is here: 2026 Salary GuideIn this episode you will hear:How to build a sustainable local executive bench in Japan instead of relying on expatsWhy "executive presence" reads differently across American, European, and Japanese leadership culturesHow to keep leaders and teams steady through high-pressure transformation and M&AWhy fluency in Japanese is, for Lars, primarily a signal of respect rather than just a skillWhat an "AI native" organization looks like inside a Japanese business, and the infrastructure gap between companies who can afford closed AI systems and those who can'tLars's prediction for Japan's biggest talent acquisition challenge and opportunity over the next five yearsAbout Lars:Lars Schandorff has built his career around a consistent thread: helping organizations grow their people even as the ground shifts beneath them, whether that ground is a collapsing oil price, an acquisition, or an entry into a wholly new market. With more than 17 years of experience spanning Denmark, the Middle East, Singapore, and Japan, he has spent his career designing talent strategy for some of the most demanding transformation environments in global business.He currently serves as Senior Director of People & Talent for APAC Supply Chain at a leading American company, where he oversees the talent agenda across 11 complex markets. Before that, Lars held senior talent and HR roles at British American Tobacco, Seadrill, and Maersk, building the entire talent ecosystem for a $1 billion greenfield factory in Japan, managing workforce architecture for an $8 billion global portfolio at Seadrill, and helping launch multi-billion-dollar energy projects across Singapore and Korea.Lars's path to Japan began in Copenhagen, where he studied East Asian studies before joining the Japanese Embassy in Denmark. From there he moved into Maersk's shipping and drilling operations, spent time in Dubai building a global leadership development function, and eventually returned to Japan, where he has now lived and worked for the past eight years. Fluent in Japanese, Lars approaches his work in Japan with a simple philosophy: as a guest in the country, it is on him to adapt, not the other way around, an outlook that shapes how he builds trust with the leaders and teams he supports.Connect with Lars Schandorff:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lars-schandorff-178baa7/Connect with David Sweet:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/drdavidsweet/Twitter: https://twitter.com/focuscorejpFacebook: :https://www.facebook.com/focuscoreasiaInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/focuscorejp/Website: https://www.japan.focuscoregroup.com/This podcast was proudly produced by Lisa Yasuda.“Doin’ the Uptown Lowdown,” used by permission of Christopher Davis-Shannon. To find out more, check out www.thetinman.co. Support independent musicians and artists.

In this FocusCore Podcast episode, host David Sweet interviews Yasuhiro Tokunaga, Representative Director and CEO of HomeServe. Yauhiro explains how he moved from structuring multi-billion dollar public-private infrastructure projects across the Middle East and Asia at Mitsubishi Corporation to building a subscription-based home repair platform that protects Japan's aging households. He describes HomeServe's rapid growth from 70,000 to over 400,000 contracts, and the alliances he built with nine electric utilities, Japan Post, and local governments by learning to speak each partner's language and interests. Tokunaga-san shares how trust, transparency, and long-term thinking replace one-shot negotiation tactics, how AI and customer data are shaping HomeServe's next stage, and his advice to foreign companies for building lasting partnerships in Japan.The 2026 FocusCore Salary Guide is here: I2026 Salary Guide In this episode you will hear:Why Yasuhiro left multi-billion dollar global infrastructure deals to build a subscription home-repair businessHow HomeServe grew from 70,000 to over 400,000 contracts through utility and government partnershipsThe key to winning trust with conservative, bureaucratic Japanese institutionsThe biggest misconceptions foreign companies have about doing business in JapanHow AI and customer data will shape HomeServe's next stage of growthLessons on transparency, trust, and long-term thinking from negotiating a $1.2B project in QatarAbout Yasuhiro:Yasuhiro Tokunaga has built his career around a single aspiration: protecting people's everyday lives through social infrastructure. With extensive experience across Japan, the Middle East, South Asia, Southeast Asia, and Central Asia, he has spent his career developing solutions to some of society's most fundamental challenges.He currently serves as Representative Director and CEO of HomeServe, where he is focused on bringing greater peace of mind to households across Japan. Before joining HomeServe, Yasuhiro worked at Mitsubishi Corporation, leading public–private partnership projects in water infrastructure with a total portfolio of approximately ¥200 billion (around US$2 billion). His experience includes leading landmark projects in Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Uzbekistan, and Sri Lanka, as well as working with governments and international organizations including the World Bank, IFC, Asian Development Bank, and African Development Bank.At HomeServe, Yasuhiro has applied this experience in large-scale infrastructure to a different kind of everyday challenge. He has helped grow the company's home repair subscription business from 70,000 to hundreds of thousands of contracts, while building partnerships with electric-power companies, Japan Post Holdings, and local governments. His work is driven by the belief that trust, collaboration, and social innovation can help solve the hidden challenges of everyday life and create greater security for households across Japan.Yasuhiro holds an LL.B. from Kyoto University, an LL.M. from Washington University in St. Louis, and completed the Program for Leadership Development at Harvard Business School.Connect with Yasuhiro Tokunaga:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/yasuhiro-tokunaga-774495b/HomeServe Website: https://www.homeserve.co.jp/Connect with David Sweet:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/drdavidsweet/Twitter: https://twitter.com/focuscorejpFacebook: :https://www.facebook.com/focuscoreasiaInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/focuscorejp/Website: https://www.japan.focuscoregroup.com/This podcast was proudly produced by Lisa Yasuda.“Doin’ the Uptown Lowdown,” used by permission of Christopher Davis-Shannon. To find out more, check out www.thetinman.co. Support independent musicians and artists.

During July and August, we'll be taking a short break from recording new episodes. To keep the conversations going, we'll be re-releasing some of our favourite recent episodes. So whether you're catching up or listening again, we hope you enjoy these episodes while soaking up the summer sunshine. We'll return in September with brand new conversations!In this FocusCore podcast episode, host David Sweet interviews Yuri Kageyama, an Associated Press reporter who grew up in both the US and Japan, attended international school and Huntsville High, and became bilingual through her father’s engineering career with NASA and IHI. Kage recounts being hired on the spot by The Japan Times, learning newspaper reporting and production, then choosing AP over other offers to write her own stories; AP sent her to Detroit during peak Japan-bashing, where she covered autos, crime, and policing and learned to focus on telling people’s stories despite prejudice.She discusses thinking and writing primarily in English, the cultural complexity of Japanese politeness, and AP’s fact-based standards amid today’s fragmented media environment.Yuri describes covering the Fukushima nuclear disaster and creating the multimedia performance/film “News from Fukushima,” including AP script review, then reads her poem “Fukushima” and reflects on the disaster’s ongoing impact, collaboration with artists, and balancing journalism with poetry.The 2026 FocusCore Salary Guide is here: 2026 Salary GuideIn this episode you will hear:Yuri's journey to becoming a bilingual reporter with the Associated PressThe cultural and language challenges she navigated between Japan and the USInsights into the creative process behind "News from Fukushima" and its impactHer experiences covering pivotal events like the Fukushima disasterThe blend of journalism and poetry in exploring complex narrativesAbout Yuri:Yuri Kageyama is a reporter with the Associated Press.She grew up in the US and in Japan, and is a graduate of Cornell University, and she holds an MA in interdisciplinary field of sociology, anthropology, and social psychology from the University of California Berkeley.She is also an outstanding polymath as a celebrated poet fiction writer, essays journalist, filmmaker, and songwriter.Connect with Yuri:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/yurikageyama/Website: http://yurikageyama.com/Connect with David Sweet:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/drdavidsweet/Twitter: https://twitter.com/focuscorejpFacebook: :https://www.facebook.com/focuscoreasiaInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/focuscorejp/Website: https://www.japan.focuscoregroup.com/This podcast was proudly produced by Lisa Yasuda.“Doin’ the Uptown Lowdown,” used by permission of Christopher Davis-Shannon. To find out more, check out www.thetinman.co. Support independent musicians and artists.

During July and August, we'll be taking a short break from recording new episodes. To keep the conversations going, we'll be re-releasing some of our favourite recent episodes. So whether you're catching up or listening again, we hope you enjoy these episodes while soaking up the summer sunshine. We'll return in September with brand new conversations!In this episode of the FocusCore Podcast, host David Sweet speaks with Brent Conkle (President and CEO) and Dan Ring of Global Leadership Solutions about the high cost of leadership mishires, especially their impact on morale, engagement, and turnover. They discuss Japan’s tight talent market and introduce their Second Opinion Service (SOS), which uses the Garuda AS suite of assessments to measure universal leadership competencies, stress sensitivity, and role fit with reliable, evidence-based results that can be customized to company and local culture. The conversation covers common hiring biases (prestige, likability, referrals), the value of data to align local and HQ decisions, and how the same methodology can support selection for management programs, succession planning, and onboarding through transition coaching. They also discuss AI’s role in hiring and share advice on making better critical hires.The 2026 FocusCore Salary Guide is here: 2026 Salary GuideIn this episode you will hear:The underestimated impact of leadership on team morale and engagementThe critical role of the Second Opinion Service in improving recruitment outcomesStrategies for successful onboarding and reducing turnoverThe relevance of stress sensitivity in high-pressure work environments like JapanThe future of strategic HR and how AI could reshape candidate assessmentAbout Brent:Brent Conkle is the President and CEO of Global Leadership Solutions Co., Ltd., bringing over 25 years of global experience in HR leadership, consulting, talent acquisition, and executive coaching across North America, Europe, and Asia. A certified HR professional and executive, leadership, and career coach, Brent is known for helping leaders cut through complexity, lead transformational change, and elevate performance with a strong focus on measurable ROI and long-term impact.Throughout his career, Brent has supported startups, corporate turnarounds, and major APAC transformation initiatives, consistently driving sustainable growth by enhancing employee engagement, retention, and organizational performance. His approach centers on developing stronger leaders and building highly engaged, high-performing workplaces.In addition to his role as CEO, Brent has served as a Regional Global Employment Advisor at the U.S. Department of State, where he supported foreign service officers and eligible family members with career strategy and professional development across international postings. He also works as a Transition & Executive Coach with Randstad RiseSmart, guiding professionals through strategic career transitions both within and beyond their organizations.Brent is the co-author of The Practical Leader: A Guide to Creating Highly-Engaged and High-Performing Organizations, offering practical tools and insights for workforce development. His mission is to coach global leaders to achieve outstanding results in their careers while creating organizations that are exceptional places to work.About Dan:Daniel Ring is an experienced Human Resources professional with over 12 years of expertise across Europe and Asia. He has a strong background in strategic HR initiatives, particularly in change management and talent development, and is passionate about leveraging technology to improve workplace practices and enhance employee experiences.In his role as a consultant with Global Leadership Solutions, Daniel works closely with organizations to support leadership development and address challenges such as organizational change and employee engagement. He focuses on equipping leaders with the tools and strategies needed to align people practices with business objectives.Daniel’s career has included roles such as Senior HR Business Partner at Broadridge Financial Solutions and Head of HR at NatWest Markets Japan. In these positions, he helped implement global career frameworks, redesign leadership structures, and streamline HR operations. His regional experience has given him a broad understanding what it takes to deliver for diverse, international organizations.Daniel is committed to helping organizations and their leaders develop effective strategies for building strong teams and achieving sustainable success in today’s evolving business landscape.Connect with Brent:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brentconkle/Global Leadership Solutions: https://getglsjapan.com/Connect with Dan:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/danpring/Connect with David Sweet:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/drdavidsweet/Twitter: https://twitter.com/focuscorejpFacebook: :https://www.facebook.com/focuscoreasiaInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/focuscorejp/Website: https://www.japan.focuscoregroup.com/This podcast was proudly produced by Lisa Yasuda.“Doin’ the Uptown Lowdown,” used by permission of Christopher Davis-Shannon. To find out more, check out www.thetinman.co. Support independent musicians and artists.