Episode #97: Hiroki Ishida, Representative Director and President of BASF Japan Ltd

Hiroki Ishida is the Representative Director and President of BASF Japan Ltd, a German multinational chemical company. Mr. Ishida originally joined BASF in the early 90s as a new graduate and worked his way into leadership roles. He has also worked in the company’s headquarter in Germany as a research chemist which he recalls as a challenging experience due to the language barrier and environment. Mr. Ishida then switched into sales and marketing as he realized he could add more value there. In addition to Japan and Germany, Mr. Ishida has developed global leadership experience working in Malaysia and Hong Kong.

The first thing Mr. Ishida noticed about working in Germany was the need to ask questions and show initiative. He recalls not getting his laptop because he did not ask for one on his first day at the office. In total, Mr. Ishida worked in Germany for 3 years before returning to Japan. During this time, Mr. Ishida focused on new business development which he started in Germany to introduce some new products to the Japanese market. Back in Japan, Mr. Ishida found the need to adopt a “hybrid” business mindset working for a Japanese market with a Japanese team, but in a global environment.

When working in Malaysia as a senior manager of sales covering multiple Asian countries, Mr. Ishida experienced further cultural differences. In the beginning, Mr. Ishida tried to implement changes that were successful in Japan, but completely failed. Overtime, Mr. Ishida realized unlike his Japanese employees who would follow the boss’s instructions, he needed to his Southeast Asian employees to buy in to his initiatives. Mr. Ishida learned to understand his team’s background and their source of motivation, and properly explain why he needed things to be done a certain way. In the end, Mr. Ishida recalls his experience in Malaysia as “fantastic” as he was able to further develop leadership while valuing diversity and inclusion and learning from his colleagues.

To this day, Mr. Ishida says he has a team-oriented approach to leadership. He explains: “my motto is [to] get together…sometimes my ideas are better, but sometimes my colleagues’ ideas are better…so I don’t care about organizational hierarchies.” In adopting this respectful and enthusiastic approach to leadership, Mr. Ishida thinks his team enjoys working together. When encouraging others to have high engagement, Mr. Ishida is careful not to simply give out instructions when delegating but also explain the objective, reasoning, and benefits people will receive by completing them. By giving a clear framework of the task but leaving the detailed process to the workers, Mr. Ishida gives both accountability and flexibility to his team. He is also understanding of mistakes and failures, and emphasizes the importance of analyzing the mistake and learning from them. Mr. Ishida adds: “In the VUCA era, we need to be more passionate, encouraging mistakes [and] bolder ideas…particularly in Japan, under these uncertain situations, we definitely need such a leader in the future.”

On innovation, Mr. Ishida recognizes the challenge of fostering creativity as BASF is a very task-oriented company with structured targets. He explains that top and mid-level leaders need to encourage bolder ideas instead of just focusing on achieving the already set goals. Mr. Ishida observes that BASF is beginning to focus on long-term success based on customer needs, understanding of industry trends, and encouraging newer ideas.

To newcomers of Japan who want to succeed as leaders, Mr. Ishida advises to understand and respect the deep-rooted Japanese culture. In Japan, harmonization is highly valued, so people may not be as comfortable speaking up compared to the west. Usually when foreign leaders enter a Japanese company, Mr. Ishida points out that it is because the organization wants to implement some sort of change. By being aware of the background and culture of a Japanese organization and clearly communicating your mission to the team and customers, Mr. Ishida thinks newcomers will establish more trust. Mr. Ishida thinks learning Japanese in an international company is not necessary, but in smaller organizations, it is beneficial to learn a few words to develop good relationships.

Mr. Ishida defines leadership as someone that inspires others and make speedy decisions particularly in uncertain situations. Additionally, it is someone who communicates with positivity, is approachable, trustworthy, and encourages open communication.