Episode #67: Gregory Lyon, President, Gregory Lyon Inc.
Japan's Top Business Interviews
Gregory Lyon is the President and founder of Gregory Lyon Inc., company specialized in providing furniture, workplace solutions and project management. Mr. Lyon originally moved to Japan in the late 90s to teach English which then led him to move to Tokyo to work in a freight forwarding company. There, Mr. Lyon became interested in working in an organization where he could be responsible for projects from beginning to end. Mr. Lyon eventually landed a position at Herman Miller as a sales representative going back and forth between Korea and Japan. Seeing more opportunities in the furniture business in Korea, Mr. Lyon persuaded his boss and moved to Korea to focus on managing the distributors there. He eventually returned to Japan and worked at Herman Miller for nine years and had finished an MBA program. Mr. Lyon then decided to start Gregory Lyon Inc.
On leading in a multinational environment as a western brand marketing to Korea and Japan, Mr. Lyon notes: “You're going by the Western brands rules in terms of marketing and how you manage your business, how you engage with clients, and then you have the Japanese side of things, which is very different. So bridging that gap can be a challenge…and finding a way to engage with clients based on what the company's line is and getting that to translate in the Japanese way.” Mr. Lyon had also received a 360-degree survey from his staff and realized he needed to be more patient and explain the background behind his opinion. Mr. Lyon also decided to focus entirely on project management and client relations which allowed him to gain trust and respect from his colleagues as he was brining in business. When dealing with global accounts, Mr. Lyon spent much of his time and effort speaking to his international clients and overseas decision-makers to ensure smooth communication and project management.
On engagement, Mr. Lyon found that by focusing on trying to solve issues locally, the Japanses staff began to trust him instead of seeing him as an outsider who only wanted to talk to the overseas decision-makers. Mr. Lyon recalls he had been able to do so effectively by discussing with the international and Japanese staff together on conference calls, ensuring people were on the same page. Mr. Lyon notes: “There's two sides [to] our clients. You have the non-Japanese side who rightly or wrongly typically will sign the checks for things and then make the decisions. That's usually the side that I've dealt with. The other side, which is equally important is the Japanese side who has to implement all of these projects and get everything done. So both sides have to feel comfortable. Both sides have to be attended to. And so, if I can help the decision-making side, it clears the path for the rest of the folks.” Moreover, Mr. Lyon holds kick-off meetings in July to review the annual company performance based on revenue and profit, as well as making plans for next year. Overtime, Mr. Lyon has learned that it is also important to be able to rely on his staff as he does not know everything, and this humble attitude has made him more trusted. He has also shown flexibility in adjusting his team’s work hours.
On advice to newcomers, Mr. Lyon recommends gaining a basic understanding of Japanese history to be able to better understand the culture. Secondly, he advises to learn enough Japanese to be able to “understand the sentiment around what is being said in Japanese.” He adds: “I think in my experience [with] Japanese clients, Japanese partners, [and] Japanese venders, if you speak [English] in a way that they understand, if you speak clearly enough and you speak slowly enough…especially for people who don't speak English very well, If you do that over time, the more comfortable they are listening to you, the better your relationship is going to be. And if they understand what you're saying whether you throw some Japanese words in or not, if it's all in English…they're going to be thrilled to talk to you.” Thirdly, Mr. Lyon advises to be honest, direct and keep things in moderation. He adds: “be genuine and be approachable and let staff know that you're on their side and you're trying to help them.”