Arrivals & Departures.

In collaboration with Santa Fe Relocation Services Japan KK, the J@pan Inc Arrivals & Departures column takes a look at some of the key figures in Japan's expatriate business community who are either just landing in Japan of flying off to new places.

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Arrivals Lounge 01

Name: Warwick Wright

Nationality: Australian

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Family: Married with two children

Personality: Competitive, enthusiastic and collaborative

Company: Deutsche Bank Group

Job Title: Head of Global Execution Services (Japan)

Arrived in Japan: October 2007

Moved From: London, UK

Comment on moving to Japan: I'm looking forward to seeing more of rural Japan and meeting new friends, watching our children integrate into the Japanese culture, and welcoming our third child (due in July).

Business Aims: To expand our current business and to identify new opportunities for growth.

Interests: I enjoy mountaineering, ocean swimming and I just finished riding my bicycle the length of France.

Motto: Lead, follow or keep out of the way.

Arrivals Lounge 02

Name: Roman Buechler

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Nationality: German

Family: Engaged

Personality: Curious, helpful, ambitious

Company: Continental Automotive Corporation

Job Title: Manager, EMC Group

Arrived in Japan: January, 2008

Moved From: Frankfurt, Germany

Experience in Japan so far: It is a very beautiful and interesting country and I have already been able to practice my hobby, "Geocaching" (treasure hunting) in and around Tokyo and Yokohoma.

Comment an moving to Japan: The Japanese market is a real challenge because of the unique demographics and the dominance of the domestic advertising agencies.

Looking forward to: Food, culture, learning a lot about Asia and Japan.

Hobbies: Sports, Geocaching, Honda Ape.

Motto: Only the dead fish goes with the flow.

Arrivals Lounge 03

Name: Jimmy Cho

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Nationality: Korean

Family: Married with two daughters

Personality: Trustworthy, dependable, approachable

Company: MHD Diageo Moet Hennessy Japan

Job Title: Marketing Director

Arrived in Japan: December, 2007

Moved From: Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Business objectives in Japan: Improve the current state of the business, build a stronger local team and establish a solid base for further future growth.

Reaction to moving to-Japan: I grew up in Japan as a boy and am very excited to be here again, its like coming back home. In terms of business, I am ready to embrace this new opportunity.

Motto: Stay curious and enrich knowledge all the time.

Arrivals Lounge 04

Name: Brian Smoyer

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Nationality: US

Family: Married with one daughter

Personality: Loyal, hard-working, curious

Company: Shinsei Bank

Job Title: Deputy Managing Director, International Principal Finance Division

Arrived in Japan: September, 2007

Moved From: Frankfurt, Germany

Business objectives in Japan: Help Shinsei Bank grow and diversify into new business opportunities outside of Japan.

Reaction to moving to Japan: I'm looking forward to the (comparatively) nice weather, the good food, and convenient lifestyle.

Motto: Do not hurry, do not rest (Goethe).

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Departure Lounge 01

Name: Carlos Olmos

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Nationality: Mexican

Personality: Leader, open-minded, independent

Company: NKK Tubes

Job Title: Tenaris IT Senior Manager Far East Region

Arrived in Japan: May 2006

Moving to: North America

Business lesson learned in Japan: In Japan, "No" means "NO." There is not even a chance that it can be changed to a "maybe."

Happiest moment in Japan: When I could order pizza (in Japanese) by myself, even though I am not o Japanese speaker at all (think you Sanae for your help and support!)

Interests: After two years in Japan, I've started to play videogames and also, assembling some Gundam models.

Motto: There is no such thing as a free lunch; you have to give something in return for it.

Departure Lounge 02

Name: Arnaud van den Bossche

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Nationality: French

Family: Single

Personality: Hard-working, hard-playing, adventurous

Company: Texas Instruments

Jab Title: Program Manager

Arrived in Japan: November, 2004

Moving to: Taiwan

Best experiences in Japan: Learning the language and history, making new friends. I enjoyed playing rugby for the Tokyo Gaijin and the All French teams.

Advice for those arriving in Japan: Lear the language. Also, people say that Japanese consumers are very different but once you go under the surface, their expectations are similar to everywhere else.

Hobbies: Surfing, rugby, mountaineering.

Recommended reading on Japan: The Sword and the Chrysanthemum by Ruth Benedict and The Japanese Chronicles by Nicolas Bouvier.

Departure Lounge 03

Name: Mark Devadason

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Nationality: British

Family: Married with two children

Personality: Intuitive, creative and energetic

Company: Standard Chartered Bank, Japan

Job Title: CEO

Arrived in Japan: September, 2003

Moving to: Bangkok, Thailand

Biggest business achievement in Japan: Leading the bank's strategic expansion into Wealth Management during the period late 2003 to 2005 when many banks were still very negative on the prospects.

Lessons learned in the Japanese market: There is more to running a business than just the numbers. It is about balancing the complementary forces of developing people, strong governance, the responsibilities to your stakeholders, including the community.

Hobbies: Photography, collecting art, skiing, tennis, golf, cars, computers and any form of electronic gadget.

Departure Lounge 04

Name: Ivo Brasil

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Nationality: Brazilian

Family: Single

Personality: Active organized, creative

Company: Vale

Job Title: Manager

Arrived in Japan: January, 2005

Moving to: Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Happiest experiences in Japan: Exploring Japan, from seeing the snow festival in Hokkaido to going scuba diving down in Okinawa.

Advice for those arriving in Japan: People here are very organized and it is very safe. But this also means you need to be careful, try and blend in and don't just stick to foreign ways and the expatriate community.

Hobbies: Golf, scuba diving, online presence.

Most influential book: Blue Ocean Strategy by W. Chan Kim and Renee Mauborgne.