The New-Era Entrepreneurial Leader: The Thoughts and Philosophies of One of Asia’S Best, Brightest and Promising Ceos

By Tomoaki Ota

Its no wonder that the Japan Times named Tomoaki Ota one of the brightest, most promising CEOs three years in a row. Not only did this Japanese business leaders company survive the unanticipated disasters of the IT bubble burst, the Lehman Brothers collapse and the Great East Japan Earthquake and tsunami, but he grew profits for six consecutive years thereafter in spite of these tragedies.

Sharing his thoughts and philosophies about leadership, Ota provides unique insights for Americas small to mid-sized business ownersthoughts and philosophies that are a unique mix of traditional Japanese philosophies and American infused education.

First published in Japan, now available in the U.S., this incredibly unique leadership book is available to small to mid-sized business owners to give fresh insight into ways to think about leading their organizations to new levels of success.

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse
• Release date: Jun 27, 2016
• ISBN: 9781524614898

Tomoaki Ota

Tomoaki Ota is president of Johoku Chemical Co., Ltd., Tokyo, a chemical company he became president of after the sudden death of his father. Since assuming the presidency, Ota has survived such crisis as the September 11 attacks, the Lehman Brothers’ collapse and the Great East Japan Earthquake as well as the Fukushima nuclear disaster—all of which impacted the business. Despite these disasters his unique business practices and philosophies have allowed the company to increase profits each year over the past six years.

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© 2016 Tomoaki Ota. All rights reserved.

Art Credit: Eriko Yamamoto, Enjin Corporation

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.

Published by AuthorHouse 06/23/2016

ISBN: 978-1-5246-1490-4 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-5246-1491-1 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-5246-1489-8 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2016909995

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

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Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Contents

Dedication

Introduction

Acknowledgments

Chapter 1 Break Out of Your Shell—Depart From the Past

Chapter 2 Thoughts for Second Generation or Successor

Chapter 3 Do Not Compare Yourself to the Founder or Predecessors

Chapter 4 Don’t Learn From Seniors

Chapter 5 Reality: Family and Self Are More Important Than Company

Chapter 6 Lack of Future Business Leaders a High Risk

Chapter 7 Media Reports Shouldn’t Influence Uncertainty

Chapter 8 It’s Not Where You Came From, But Where You Are Heading

Chapter 9 The Application of Contradiction

Chapter 10 Wars Help Demonstrate The Difference Between Strategy and Tactics

Chapter 11 The Importance of Positive and Negative

Chapter 12 What’s the Point?

Chapter 13 The Four Don’ts of Success

Chapter 14 Five Fatal Flaws to Avoid

Chapter 15 Be Savvy About Finance

Chapter 16 A Few Final Thoughts

Dedication

I dedicate this book to my two sons, Shin Ota and Jo Ota, in the hopes that some 20 years from now, as they read this book it will help them to think deeply about the decisions they will make in their quests for success and as they encounter challenges which they will inevitably be forced to face.

Introduction

Because of the unique business philosophy from which we operate, our privately owned chemical company not only survived the crisis of the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake, we actually grew and prospered. As a result of our successful recovery, I published a book in Japan in which I share the philosophies, strategies and thinking that contributed to our recovery and continued growth. In this book I have addressed the growing business challenges in Japan. In doing so, I realize that many of the challenges that Japanese small and mid-sized businesses face are quite similar to those facing small to mid-sized American businesses.

Although I am a Japanese–born businessman, I have been educated in the United States. I have an MBA from Southern Methodist University (SMU) in Dallas, Texas and am a member of the Cox School of Business Alumni Association Board at SMU. Since 2001, I have been president of Johoku Chemical Co., Ltd., a position I assumed at age 36 following the sudden death of my father. It is my connection with America that has prompted me to share with American business leaders many of the same philosophies and thinking published in my Japanese book. The reality is, we are all faced with many of the same global challenges.

Many business leaders are drawn to how-to books written by consultants. These approaches may be useful but in contrast, in this book I share the realities of a company president—not founder—who had to overcome the upheaval of the bursting IT bubble economy, the Lehman Brothers’ collapse and the Great East Japan Earthquake and tsunami, all of which happened immediately after assuming my leadership role. When you’re facing unanticipated trouble such as this I don’t think you can follow a how-to manual. You have to rely on your basic beliefs, principles and philosophies. Throughout this book that is what I will share with you. I will not only touch on concepts but also on technical aspects in various business situations.

Much like in America, where small business is the engine that drives the overall economy, ninety-nine percent of Japanese companies are small to mid-sized and small to mid-sized manufacturing companies largely make up the nation’s GDP. Additionally, the technological strength of the manufacturing companies is significant to national policy and as the economy matures, the significance of the service industry increases. However Japan’s economy can never exist with its service industry alone. Japan’s GDP exceeds 500 trillion yen; it’s population exceeds 100 million. Japan is too big to be comparable to countries with financial and service industries such as Hong Kong, Singapore and Luxembourg. Therefore, the manufacturing industry is vital to Japan’s economy. But the reality is Japanese manufacturing companies face many challenges due to the changing world—a changing world that also impacts the future of American companies. And while my experience comes from the manufacturing industry specializing in chemical products, and the environment I describe may be different from your industry, it is my desire to provide useful information that all small to mid-sized business leaders will find helpful as we all face the common challenges of economic uncertainty, globalization, a declining birth rate and the retirement of baby boomers, and successfully integrating