Can Japan reboot its startup culture?
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I've certainly dealt with the pushback that comes with suggesting new ideas in Japan. I've heard "efficiency" derided as a foreigner idea, specifically "you Americans always want to change things to make them more efficient" in regards to no longer grading 1000s of multiple choice entrance exams by hand.
And I don't want to get political, but while I can understand how Abe's economic policies might help pump life into the startup scene, I don't see how the hyper conservative social atmosphere he has charged since taking office will help. I don't mean to be too cynical, but when I read that Abe wants to encourage Japanese startups, I read that he wants to encourage startups of Japanese people not startups in Japan (evidenced perhaps by all of the articles on this subject that mention Masayoshi Son go out of their way to tell you that he is Zainichi Korean, even though he's a Japanese citizen and his family has been in Japan for generations).
Also, I'm pretty sure you do hear companies boasting their age. IBM (though not a startup or anything) does this. A lot of <20 year old companies like to mention if they are more than 5 years old to show that they are stable and have experience.
Sadly Kongo Gumi, the Nr. 1, was swallowed by another company.
Often though, a younger company just assumes the "body" of the older one. It helps with getting loans from the bank, etc.
Wait, what? Isn't this the county famous for Kaizen and the Toyota method?
A lot of inward facing companies in Japan foster an atmosphere of "you aren't working unless it really feels like you're working." But no one cares if you sleep at your desk, so it's not all bad.
* Their fathers and grandfathers were forced to become entrepreneurs because they were scorned (in various ways) by traditional Japanese businesses due to their heritage.
* These parents found success in sometimes seedy areas of the Japanese economy, such as casinos, love hotels, etc. In other words, businesses that "proper" Japanese did not want to be caught running.
* The parents converted these successes into more respectable businesses, like restaurants, etc.
* All of this entrepreneurial knowledge and spirit (and eventually capital) got passed down to the kids, over the generations.
Likewise, many of the other entrepreneurs I met were foreigners, from places like Ghana, Bangladesh, etc. It's just anecdotal, but interesting food for thought nonetheless.
And "tiny" probably doesn't refer to land area either. Much of Japan is rural or uninhabitable. In both countries the amount of habitable non-farmland is relatively "tiny". Quite unlike the USA.
Yet at the same time, I've heard it said that the software landscape in Japan is pretty rough -- bureaucratic, aged, and inefficient. I've found that really upsetting, because Japan has, of course, a reputation for being a technological wonderland.
People living in Japan -- natives or otherwise -- is this true? I've had a dream of living in Tokyo as a web developer since the day I came back from Tokyo, and it seems like the only way to make this happen as a non-Japanese speaking (though very interested), non-CS major American is to come already successful, or not come at all.
If one goes strictly by the published requirements, it would not be straightforward to get you an engineering status of residence (so that you could be hired as an engineer by a Japanese company, as opposed to being transferred in from a foreign company), but there are ways around that. (For example, documenting that you have 10 years of paid experience in development would satisfy the degree requirement... that documentation will be expected with to-the-month resolution.) Candidly, if you do not speak Japanese, getting a professional job with a Japanese megacorp is likely to be quite difficult. (There are a very few prominent exceptions, such as Rakuten.)
There are some Japanese startups which hire foreigners who do not speak Japanese. Your best bet for getting hired at one is to know the decisionmakers personally (true of getting hired at any company anywhere, but of particular interest to you). One potential avenue for finessing this is to come to Tokyo on a visa-waiver for a few weeks of sightseeing, meet people like it is your job, and then get the ball rolling on employment. Fair warning: many startups are, like the US, not exactly organizationally optimized to support your visa/status of residence paperwork.
I don't want to scare kmf off from coming here; you should, it's a wonderful country. Just need to manage your expectations...
You should certainly learn Japanese if you want to live there, but you'd still be way better off than rural Russia.
I see hudibras is getting downvoted but it probably is fair to say that to native English speakers new to the country, people may expect more than they get from ESLs in Japan. I have some pet theories as to why but I don't think it would contribute all that much to the discussion. Unless you're coming to Japan to be a corporate translator (may all the gods have mercy on your soul) it really shouldn't be an issue as long as you're willing to learn a little Japanese along the way.
Shopping in Korean, I can just set it to OCR mode and sorta read labels I don't understand. (Of course, Hangul's probably a lot easier to OCR than kana+kanji.) I've also found that while the store people will respond to me in Korean if they don't see me, once they realize it's me they flip into a common third tongue.
I've even had "conversations" in other languages just by pressing the flip button and letting the other person talk. They can correct any audio recognition failures or just type.
In general, the translations for simple stuff and interactions seem pretty good. Sometimes you need the alternative translations to find one that is accurate. But I wouldn't say you "cannot speak, listen, write, or read anything".
OTOH, sometimes it has odd things. Formal-something I (吾輩) like from the "I am a cat" gets translated as "Spence" (I think the pronoun isn't used much). Or maybe one possible pronunciation of them is close enough to Spence it's used as a name in some place that uses those characters?
Not to mention, you can pick up the kana in a week, and at least the meanings of the basic kanji in a month or two, claims the guy that made the book that did teach me kana in a week. I'd assume if you're gonna go to Japan and be serious, you'd at least listen to the first 10 Pimsleur sessions for basic "hi I can't speak Japanese", and learn the scripts somewhat.
For a job interview or a more formal business environment though, you're going to start at a considerable disadvantage if you don't speak Japanese in Japan. It's possible (I did it), but it's really, really hard.
I always say that the true test of being fluent in Japanese is not being able to read the newspaper or have a conversation. It's being able to read and fill out a government form while people are waiting in line behind you and a bureaucrat is waiting patiently in front of you.
More often people equate "Internet", "Web" and "Mixi" (Their version of Facebook and of course Facebook is popular too). And it's hard to get a proper feel for what's really out there online and, more importantly, what areas are lacking.
That's not to say Japan has any shortage of innovation. They're very creative in innumerable ways. Sometimes the creativity shines through the bureaucracy (especially among the younger people). Culturally, they're still very dependent on the "group".
[Source: Two close friends living there]
Edit: Also note, it's a bit expensive to live there, so you need to support yourself with minimal luxuries (at least at first) as possible.
This is heavily location-dependent and also dependent on lifestyle factors. Raising a family in Tokyo as rich expatriates (the lifestyle that e.g. Citibank managers adopt when "in country") would require an income pretty deep into the six figures (in dollars). However, 22 year old employees of Japanese megacorps take home salaries which are less than typical San Francisco rents and make them work.
The ramen profitable number [+] for me in Gifu prior to getting married was about $1,500 a month if I were cooking Japanese food and about $2,000 a month when I was eating my usual diet, which included lots of meals out (not too expensive here) and Western food (quite expensive). An example of the difference: I find it literally impossible to do a taco party for friends for under $60, where if we were having a typical Japanese dinner that could cost $10 to $20.
[+] Edit: This is really important: while $1,500 is indeed ramen profitable, if you attempt to use that level of income in support of getting or renewing an engineering status of residence, it is highly likely you will be ramen deported. The examining clerks have wide discretion in how they define "enough" income but "at least as much as a Japanese person" or "3 million yen" are much more common than "ramen profitable" in sustained applications.
It is possible though to do development on a visa other than the engineering visa, as I've written about here: http://www.tokyodev.com/2013/01/12/japan-visa-programming-jo...
In Japan you can look forward to low salaries, long hours, no advancement opportunities and working with trailing edge technology. Whats not to like?
And unfortunately that's only slightly hyperbolic. Full discussion below, and do bear in mind that it's a) an atypically good offer for Japan, and b) much of the audience is young English teachers on shoestring salaries.
http://www.reddit.com/r/japan/comments/zftls/found_a_softwar...
Quite true. Where they excel is physical processes (hardware and people). Within an hour of being there it's evident: monorail quickly ferries you from tarmac to customs (easy), then fingerprint scanner connected to PC running Windows XP craps itself 10 times before success (annoying). Your luggage is neatly arranged on the conveyor by staff so that it's upright, identifiable and simple to pick up (easy). Go to bathroom and grin as the urinal flushes itself, then wash hands with delightful auto soap dispenser and auto basin then quickly egress to the airport subway (great!). Discover onboard wi-fi only accessible using unintelligible pre-paid system (nuts...I need to check my email). Oh well, I'll be at the hotel soon. Check in and bang your head against the wall as they advise one part of their system has the correct check-in/check-out dates, while another critical system has different dates. Lovely clerk talks with manager to find a work-around to a double-booked room. Finally get in hotel room and whip out Macbook Air...Ethernet access only. Off to the local Softbank store to get a dongle. Plug it in - 100/100mbit internet connection (Lovely!).
You're in a state of flux between delight and bewilderment.
The fingerprint reader at customs worked fine.
WiFi on the high speed train from Narita worked wonderfully. I signed up on the browser redirection, registered for the 1-day free offer for Visa cardholders, they correctly allowed me access to the CA so the connection was secure and their certificate signed. It was generally quite smooth.
Google Maps' detail in Tokyo is unbelievable. "Ginza line towards Shibuya station. Walk for 2m. Take the stairway down to the 1st floor. Walk for 25m" I am not making this up.
My conclusion is that the following are the only companies that you should consider if you are in a position to choose (i.e. via your skill): Cookpad, LINE (formerly NHN Japan, formerly Livedoor), DeNA, GREE. That's basically it.
I've seen quite a few non-Japanese Cookpad engineers on Twitter, and heard from @miyagawa that they actually have an "international team" as well (and at least some of these non Japanese engineers seem to live in Tokyo). IIRC they are hiring, so maybe shoot him a msg on Twitter? (his english is one of the best I've seen from someone originally from Japan)
The first month of living in Japan is bliss. You're learning a new language, playing with really cool public infrastructure, solving problems you didn't imagine you'd run into (is there a three-pronged outlet anywhere in this apartment?!), and seeing things that you'd consider "exotic" on a daily basis.
Once the novelty wears off, you start to understand that you don't quite fit into this culture quite as well as you thought you did. It turns out that growing up in America does infuse you with certain values, and they're not as universal as you think. When people say such-and-such is "part of the culture," that means that on an individual level, that thing is part of people's value system.
Going home before everyone else, for example, isn't just awkward; it's wrong. It's unfair that some of your coworkers have to stay late and some get to go home. What would your mother think? Why are you complaining that you can't use an ATM after 10pm? Why would you ever want to do that? Is it because you're irresponsible and bad at planning? Or are you just using it to stay out all night drinking?
Right now you might think you're alright with the working hours because, hey, Japan! But when your version of "Japan" is your apartment, your desk, the bar after work, and your train commute that you've cut down by 15 minutes due to your supreme knowledge of entrance positioning, you will wonder what happened to those dreams of castles, temples and teahouses. You could plan a trip somewhere, but you'd have to take a day off work when everyone's so busy, and that would be wrong.
I'm going to give you some links that would be useful.
Tokyo based Seed Accelerator: http://onlab.jp/
Social Hiring platform: https://www.wantedly.com/
Japanese AngelList-like service: http://creww.me/
That said, you will run into bureaucratic nightmares. I could go on for pages about firms that won't allow developers FTP access, ones that won't allow you to set up WordPress (they're not an official vendor), firms that want people to sign up for their email newsletter, but by phone because they think the Internet is scary and they don't want personal information put into their website, and other stuff that to this day I still sort of don't believe.
But you'll learn how to be patient, get through those situations, and build either a client base or find a job somewhere that makes sense. Because there are great clients and good companies to work for here. It takes time, but if you learn the language and have solutions to problems people have and can show some examples of those solutions in a portfolio, you'll start finding work. Webdevs are a dime a dozen, but good webdevs who can seamlessly work in English and Japanese will always have work here.
- It is too risk averse. Making big mistakes, especially with your career, is looked down upon and it makes you a social pariah.
- Japan is too brand name obsessed and it's not limited to products either. It extends to your career, as to what company you work for and what schools you graduated from. i.e. You need to work for already successful companies. It also doesn't look too kindly on drop outs or anyone different either, who are probably the very people building successful start ups.
- While the younger generation is better, Japan still has a xenophobic society. Most foreigners unless they are of Japanese descent still can't get citizenship. Foreigners bring a lot of innovation and different ideas to the start up sector that Japan misses out on it. The US isn't perfect on this matter either, but compared to Japan it's way better.
In Japan's defense, most of the EU suffer similar problems.
http://whill.jp/ <-- awesome
A few points:
“this is accompanied by a very envious, critical and vocal audience. They underline every possible reason that the product will fail and keep doing so indefatigably. They attack the innovator on Twitter, Facebook, blogs, etc; and they keep doing so until the innovator raises a white flag.”
What.
There's always haters and detractors. That's part of doing anything in life, and start-ups are no exception.
Once, a Japanese guy spent 10 minutes trying to explain that our startup's failure was guaranteed because Japanese people would never upload their company stamp (a necessary function of official Japanese business documents) to a web service. Even after I told him we already have a bunch of users who are doing this, he was steadfast, so I simply crossed him off the list of people to spend time on. Problem solved.
One of the very first things we learned when selling to businesses in Japan is that social proof is a critical factor. So our focus changed to getting even a single business using our software, and then trying to feature them and promote them as much as we could.
It's pretty damn hard for people to say your product is failing when you can show you have a lot of people using it.
The more we did this, the more businesses we could get, and we continued to repeat this process until last month when we finally crossed 10,000 signed up companies in Japan.
Getting to here took years of work. This is part of a startup. Understanding your problem space and challenges, and then adapting your product and marketing message accordingly.
"Japanese businessmen tend not to trust the younger generation."
Oh yeah? Try doing a startup and being in the younger generation, AND being foreigners.
You have to build and earn trust over time. You're not handed a trust card as soon as you open a new business.
"If you look at successful Japanese start-ups, they are mostly run by CEOs who have applied the ‘foreign connection’ in some way"
This is frustratingly inaccurate, and belies a total lack of exposure and understanding of the Japanese startup scene. There are plenty of very successful startups that are based in Japan, and focused on Japan, that have zero foreign elements.
"In some cases, like Mr Son, he has managed to combine all five factors."
Commentating on the Japanese startup scene using the CEO of Softbank as an example, Softbank being a company founded in 1981 with a market cap of 43 billion dollars, makes no sense at all.
"There’s lots of venture capitalists here but they are only interested in games and new media"
Wrong. We get weekly un-solicited contacts from Japanese VCs asking for meetings with us.
This is a result of us hustling very hard over a long period of time, and working very hard to establish our credibility and stability.
The Japanese startup scene definitely has areas where it can improve, but they're at best papered over in this article.
I always wanted to ask: are you guys looking at expanding in other areas? Like out of Japan and/or offering invoices entry services?
I think I can speak for Jason when I say that we're always looking to expand our offering but we want to do it smartly and in a customer-driven way. You can certainly use our service to make english-language documents but for us a big part of 'localization' is really sweating the details and understanding customer needs. So far, that has meant a focused product for Japanese businesses. The Japanese business consumer is somewhat conservative in adopting new process and has high expectations for services so it's important for us to do things right.
But yeah, like most startups we're always working on new things... :-)
I agree with Paul. We're pretty ambitious on the spaces we want to go after, and we have a lot of room to grow inside Japan first. As Paul mentions, Japanese businesses have very high expectations for service quality, so we want to nail each new feature we put out.
After Japan, we're keen to go after Asia, and then the world. <strokes black cat>
Also Jason briefly mentioned the HN Tokyo meetups they also organise. There is one next month ( http://hntokyo.doorkeeper.jp/events/5489?utm_campaign=event_... ) on the 11th. If you are in any way tech inclined and in the area, it is a great event with lots of cool people.
Here are the details for the next one:
This is probably one of the most important cultural leaps for foreigners to make in Japan in general -- social proof can and often will override other qualifications.
We've done some marketing on the product I've been working on, but the majority of our marketing is focused on getting big, recognizable names to use our product so we can use them as a social springboard for other companies. Once we got one or two big names, lots of other people who were on the edge started falling in line immediately.
I think this shows that some Japanese businesses are at least conscious of the problems depicted in the article, and are trying to learn from Silicon Valley.
Digging deeper into this... I would like to see some data on where grads go. Having spent time in Japan, my intuition was a disproportionate amount of top grads from top schools want to work at old (40+ years) large companies, relative to a similar number in the US. The ones who do go elsewhere wind up at small family businesses. I would like to see data on this.
The larger issue is there isn't as developed a concept of "VC and Angels toss a bunch of small piles of money at juniors and hope one or two grow into a big pile." I suspect the data behind this is much easier to find.
Perhaps much of the push can come from outsiders? Foreigners well versed in the local customer, with foreign money? The large companies tend to be more reluctant to hire international workers anyway.
It's not easy, but Japan is a glorious country with a fascinating culture. It's worth the effort.