Ten years after the financial crisis, G20 head-of-state meetings are widely considered as “Talking Club” events. Ironically, however, Mr. Trump’s best efforts to undermine international cooperation seem to turn the Hamburg Summit this weekend into a highly relevant meeting to discuss alliances, align strategies, and find new ground beyond US leadership. While the meetings of Mr. Trump, Putin and Xi will grab the headlines, talks at side of the event, including a new Japan-EU FTA, strategies for energy and digital security, as well as about the future of globalization will be at least as important. Let’s discuss which cards have been put on the table and what we have learned from behind the smoke screens.

In the July CI meeting, we welcome Mr. Martin Schulz, Senior Research Fellow, Fujitsu Research Institute. Martin was a popular speaker at a past CEO Insights Forum in the evening. He will be coming back to share his insights and spur a discussion on some of the outcomes of the G20 summit in Europe. Please join us as we discuss

* G20 in Hamburg – The frictions and solutions
* US international policy is taking shape – Who is engaging whom?
* The end of globalization or a new start on digital platforms?

Date– Wednesday, 12 July 2017
1230PM-1400PM
Venue–
Roppongi Hills Club- Proteus
51 fl. Roppongi Hills Mori Tower,
6-10-1 Roppongi, Minato-ku,
Tokyo, 106-6151 Japan

From the CEO’s office perspective, our teams bring various requests. Some require a lot of our attention, while other areas would be better delegated to our management teams. With the recent rise in malicious software attacks, we’re seeing more and more techniques used to dive deeper into our businesses. Social engineering, corporate espionage and various other attacks can not only hurt our business but it can disable it. The recent attack of the WannaCry ransomware had a major cost for those organizations that are not prepared to withstand a cyber attack. In the June CI we will discuss

・Recent attacks and how companies were broken
・How to make sure your technology team is thinking outside of the box and giving you the best without breaking the bank
・Personal precautions the CEO should take to protect both themselves at home and in the office

Date– Thursday, 8 June 2017 1230PM-1400PM
Venue
Roppongi Hills Club- Star Anise
51 fl. Roppongi Hills Mori Tower,
6-10-1 Roppongi, Minato-ku,Tokyo, 106-6151 Japan

Robert Burnside will help you envision a culture of coaching within your company, and how to leverage people’s desire to learn in order to build motivation, initiative, innovation and productivity.

In the 1950s Peter Drucker proposed a management revolution: a flatter, more inclusive approach, tapping the creative power of all levels of the organisation—in place of the entrenched command-and-control culture of the day. The idea caught on, as it made so much good sense. Hundreds of thought leaders and thousands of books elaborated on Drucker, and today, most successful corporations buy into his theory.

So why do many managers complain of disengagement, low motivation, high stress levels, or lack of entrepreneurial spirit? Why do many startups begin to crumble when professional management steps in? Why is it so difficult to execute on Drucker’s great theories? Because we don’t understand the key component of execution at every level—ourselves.

If you coach a person instead of telling him, he will know and trust himself, and you, sufficiently to take more ownership, make his own decisions, grow himself, and grow his results. He will build self-awareness. And if you cascade a culture of coaching through your company, you begin a growth of self-awareness through the organisation, and capture the magic ingredient of motivation, retention, and being a Great Place to Work: trust.

Robert, a full-time professional executive coach and trainer of coaches, will discuss:

• what a coaching culture looks like
• what coaching really means
• why it can benefit your company and you personally
• a simple low-risk how-to of getting started (without ever saying “roll-out”)

Date– Wednesday, 7 June 2017
1230PM-1400PM
Venue–
Roppongi Hills Club- Club Studio
51 fl. Roppongi Hills Mori Tower,
6-10-1 Roppongi, Minato-ku,
Tokyo, 106-6151 Japan

For the CEO, there are many variables we must be aware of to manage our business. At CI we talk frequently about taxation, human resources, systems, and many other areas. In taking care of our teams, there are tremendous costs associated with healthcare, retirement, and training. Healthcare is an area that we don’t talk about but is something the boss needs to understand. With the government healthcare has become a major issue with a push towards cost cutting with generic drugs, the social insurance system is struggling to keep up with the ballooning costs, and other challenges make us wonder what is the current condition of healthcare in Japan and how does it affect our business?

In the June CI meeting, our own member boss of J&J’s Japan operations, Mr. Tom Hiiro will guide us through a very interesting discussion on the condition of healthcare in Japan as we plan to cover areas such as

・The condition of healthcare services in Japan
・Behind the scenes insights into the industry and trends
・How healthcare can affect the CEOs bottomline

Date–Tuesday , 6 June 2017
1230PM-1400PM
Venue–
Roppongi Hills Club- Star Anise
51 fl. Roppongi Hills Mori Tower,
6-10-1 Roppongi, Minato-ku,
Tokyo, 106-6151 Japan

In our era of leadership, CI members have seen the transformation of marketing from print and billboards to digital marketing and online. Having a brand that reflects well online is essential to being a successful enterprise.  As eCommerce and online marketing is a relatively new area, there aren’t many universities teaching about the business or people experienced in the area that we can help from day one.  There is a lot to learn and it is valuable to get insights from those who have already done so.

 

Mr. Guy Keeling, Vice President Global e-Commerce at the Barilla Group, will be visiting Japan in May.  Barilla Group is a global leader at driving online food sales working with the world’s winning grocery e-retailers, being hailed by L2 as a Thought Leader and publicly recognized by Amazon as a Top 5 CPG to work with.  For the past four years, Barilla’s global e-Commerce revenues have grown at double the industry average.  Prior to taking up his role at Barilla four years ago, Mr Keeling worked in leadership roles at Tesco and at Procter & Gamble.  On May 16, we will have the opportunity to get to know Mr. Keeling in a joint CEO Insights event.

 

You will also have the opportunity to catch up with other CI members from the other two groups. Please note, this is an invitation-only event with limited space due to the room size. We will accommodate as many people in as possible.

Date– Tuesday, 16 May 2017 1230PM-1400PM (Cost- 6,000)
Venue– Bulgari’s Il Ristorante – Chef Luca Fantin,
Ginza Tower 2-7-12 Ginza, Chuo-ku Tokyo 104-0061
+81 3 6362 0555
**Please note we will be meeting in the private area on the 8F.
Venue information here

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More On Barilla

Barilla is an Italian family owned food company. Established in 1877, it’s now an international Group present in more than 100 countries. Today Barilla is the world leader for pasta, for ready-made sauces in Europe, for bakery products in Italy and for crisp breads in Scandinavia. It employs over 8,000 people and owns 29 production sites. In Barilla we strive every day to be the preferred company for People, promoting healthy and joyful food experiences, reducing our impact on the Planet and fostering open and caring dialogue in the Communities in which we operate. This is why we believe that the “Good for You, Good for the Planet” approach is the only way for doing business for our Group. Because we are family owned, we do not put profits ahead of our passion for superior quality and sustainable growth.

 

Stats, Facts & Latest Trends

• Online (+19.5% CAGR, 2016-2021f ) has overtaken discount (+6.1% CAGR, 2016-2021f ) to become the fastest-growing grocery channel globally.
• Global grocery retailers (WaMart, Carrefour) transitioning to enable online growth – In late 2016, Walmart announced accelerated investment in ecommerce to achieve 20-30% annual growth in the channel by 2018. 2016 saw Walmart acquire Jet.com in the US as well as a 10.8% stake in JD.com in China. Walmart’s proportion of sales coming from online is forecast to more than double to 7.2% by 2021 – representing over USD40bn in sales. “This company, over time, is going to look like more of an e-commerce company” said Doug McMillon CEO Walmart.   
• Marketplaces and their inexorable growth: Marketplaces are an important route for brands and retailers looking to tap into the potential of new markets.  Marketplaces are globalising, leading to ‘borderless commerce’.
• Online-to-offline gaining unstoppable traction: Walmart report that customers buying both instore and online at Walmart spend nearly 80% more than shoppers that only visit the store and 10 times more than online-only shoppers. Even Amazon is looking at building its own collection sites in the US, allowing customers to collect fresh orders at their own convenience.

Online advertising surpassed print advertising in volume in 2012. According to a study released in 2012 by eMarketer, online advertising was expected to generate $39.5 billion in sales that year — a 23.3% increase from 2011 — compared to $33.8 billion on print. However, like anything humans do, it’s hard to break old habits. Fast forward to 2017, there are still some newspapers with help wanted adverts and magazines advertising luxury brands. How effective is that? The model for raising your brand awareness and your important influence on the market has changed. CEOs must be aware of what media, whether it be social, online, or print, can have on their brand.

How can we manage our brands with our team members? How do we increase the exposure for the brands that our teams sell and support? What can we do for the future of our brand and new product ideas? How do we harness the power of the new Millennial work force coming into our ranks? In the May CEO Insights, we will discuss effective ways to manage our corporate brands in this new era of media for our teams, distributors, and most importantly our clients.

Date–Tuesday , 9 May
1230PM-1400PM
Venue–
Roppongi Hills Club- Italian Restaurant- La Cucina
51 fl. Roppongi Hills Mori Tower,
6-10-1 Roppongi, Minato-ku,
Tokyo, 106-6151 Japan

Many CEOs have extensive legal experience, however as the representative of a major business it is not easy to know everything. Knowing how things work legally in advance can save a lot of pain later on. In the May CI lunch, we will have a Legal Round Robin. There will be no slide decks. CI welcomes Mr. David Case, a partner with Orrick Tokyo Law Offices as our guest. We have prepared a list of topics and questions to spur the conversation but this is your chance to ask ANYTHING legal. The meeting will follow the flow of the group, however initial areas planned may include

People- Hiring & Firing
Data Protection
Mergers & Acquisitions
eCommerce
Corporate Liability
Digital Currencies
Agreements
Protections

Don’t miss this chance to catch up with one of CI’s favorite legal professionals and compare notes with your CEO peers.

Date– Thursday, 11 May 2017 1230PM-1400PM
Venue
Roppongi Hills Club- Proteus
51 fl. Roppongi Hills Mori Tower,
6-10-1 Roppongi, Minato-ku,Tokyo, 106-6151 Japan

For decades, Japan has been the land of low interest rates, and with the advent of Abenomics interest rates have gone from low to zero and even into negative territory. Taking a loan has never been so cheap, yet Japanese citizens and companies continue to hesitate to borrow and invest. Citizens in Japan are sitting on huge and increasing savings, more than half of which lay idle in cash deposits bearing no interest. The government wants to change the country from a savings mindset to an investing mindset to ensure better future prospects for all, and has engaged various measures towards that goal. But encouraging people to take more risk is one thing; protecting the public from overly risky or unscrupulous investments is another. This makes changing the savings to investment transition even more challenging. Enter the revived concept of Fiduciary Duty, Japan-style, which requires our banks and financial intermediaries to implement measures protecting their clients and investors.

In the May CI meeting, experienced banker and financial boss Mr. Laurent Depus leads the discussion on what is going on inside the consumer market, the banking industry, and government. Mr. Depus is the Managing Director of French financial house Natixis’ Japan business and a long term resident of Japan. He also serves on the board of a Japanese financial industry leading firm.

Come join us for insights on what our bankers sell us in Japan, and how!

Date– Wednesday, 10 May 2017 1230PM-1400PM
Venue
Roppongi Hills Club- Roppongi Hills Club- La Cucina Restaurant (Italian)
51 fl. Roppongi Hills Mori Tower,
6-10-1 Roppongi, Minato-ku,Tokyo, 106-6151 Japan

Japan has a constant influx of international brands looking to come to advantage of the market and it’s buying power each year. Of course, importing a product, setting up distribution, and building brand aware all contribute to success in Japan, this is not the only way. Licensing your brand in Japan is another option.

France’s FAUCHON is having considerable success in licensing their brand in Japan. In the April CI lunch we will get a chance to hear the strengths of the FAUCHON model that has worked for over 45 years. They work in food, drinks, clothing, and bags to name a few.  Why would licensing be an option? What are the pros and cons for choosing the licensing model?  How do you pick a good business partner? How do you really negotiate a win-win agreement with that business partner?

In April, FAUCHON’s Japan CEO Mr Philippe Jardin, will present his thoughts on these many areas in the world of licensing that builds your brand. 

Date–Wed  12 April 2017

1230PM-1400PM

Venue–

Roppongi Hills Club- Italian Restaurant- La Cucina

51 fl. Roppongi Hills Mori Tower,

6-10-1 Roppongi, Minato-ku,

Tokyo, 106-6151 Japan

As a CEO of a Japanese, MNC, or regional firm we are responsible for many resources.  We have people, facilities, business development, marketing, warehousing, and a myriad of other company ‘assets’ to manage, maximize and grow.  Although human resources seem to be a frequent theme at CEO Insights, there is another area that heavily impacts our output: finances and taxes. CEO are not only responsible for corporate finances but also need to be wise with our personal finances as we live in multiple countries, travel frequently, and have many organizations wanting to get into our wallets.  Individual income rate go up to 55.9%.    Income and asset reporting duties have become more onerous.  Tax liabilities abound.  Bright CEOs must understand both corporate and individual implications.

Challenges in corporate tax risk management and compliance hit the c-level on the company side with constant change and ever evolving tax changes.  In the April please join us for lunch with Hans-Peter Musahl, a partner with EY Tax in Tokyo. Mr. Musahl has hands on experience in advising people on how to use their financial toolbox.  He advises executives and business in mostly Japan and Europe.

Date– Thursday, 11 April 1230PM-1400PM

Venue–

Roppongi Hills Club- Roppongi Hills Club- La Cucina Restaurant (Italian)

51 fl. Roppongi Hills Mori Tower,

6-10-1 Roppongi, Minato-ku,, Tokyo, 106-6151 Japan