“The Nomad” is a fortnightly published series where I talk to professionals in PR and Comms who are from a country but spend their love and life in different countries and cultures, then delve into the insights which might help other people to live or to do business in an inter-cultural world. If you or someone you know would be happy to share their perspective, please get in touch! I’d love to hear from you.
Our Vietnamese childhood was filled with Pokemon, Doraemon, and seven Dragon balls; the Japanese culture co-existing peacefully in anime form. Japan is famous for its etiquettes, customs and culture, for its mysterious and beguiling world of the geisha, the global phenomenon of manga, and the legacy of the warrior class – Samurai.
It’s the land of the rising sun. Some things about it mystify us. On one hand, its traditional culture dates back thousands of years with a lot of societal norms; on the other, it’s been shifting the world with technological developments that push boundaries.
That’s why Japan is a fascinating case.
In this episode 6 of The Nomad, I had the opportunity to sit down with Shabaz Hussain who is a New York native with 10+ years of brand leadership experience across the Asia Pacific. His work and expertise has spanned from Formula 1 and Football to Deadpool and Dragon Ball Z and has allowed him to create value for leading brands at some of the world’s most awarded creative agencies in New York, Singapore, and Tokyo. Most recently, he spent three years as a Senior Account Director at McCann Worldgroup in Tokyo, Japan before moving on to start his own agency venture.
Hi Shabaz, how you are doing? What’s been keeping you busy lately?
The public answer is ‘Doing great thanks!’ – but the real answer is that it’s a super challenging time right now I think for everyone, both mentally and physically. Right now, busy for me is that I’m laying the groundwork for my own assets and businesses, working with a few exciting agency partners and opportunities coming up!
Why Tokyo? What brought you to Tokyo in the first place and what was your first impression of this city and Japan?
The most interesting and inspiring people I’ve ever met usually had one commonality – they’ve lived and made careers in different countries. After six years in Singapore, I felt ready for a new challenge. I have a habit of throwing myself into the most difficult situations and learning my way through, hence Japan caught my interest. How many people can say they’ve worked in megacities like NYC, Singapore, and Tokyo, right? It helped that my now fiancé speaks Japanese and was wanting to move as well for some unfinished business. After living here for almost three years, I can assertively say that my first impressions have completely changed – things like the food, history, and landscape far exceed them, while aspects such as work culture and some societal norms have shocked me.
Can you expand on your last point about the work culture and the societal norms in Japan?
Coming in new, I had a fresh perspective. So, I looked at a lot of these aspects not to be judgmental, but to observe and learn how to adapt and improve in areas relevant to my situation.
The work culture is absolutely true about what you see in the news, or TV shows. People work 10 to 15 hours a day. They go home, and then they do it again the next day. That, in itself, creates lots of other problems: relationship problems, mental health problems, things like that. The overwork culture is sometimes expected of you. In the agency’s world, there’re many stories of people just working themselves to death. In my time with McCann Worldgroup, there has been a shift from an international mix of cultures to one that is more domestic. There used to be a lot more foreigners which helped alleviate some of the work, but due to industry pullbacks have mostly left. You may feel judged if you’re trying to set standard work-life boundaries. “Sorry I can’t always answer emails outside of normal working hours” and people treat you differently. Legally companies have to show the effort of work-life balances however it is rarely followed. Unless senior management or governments regulate further, the overwork mentality may not see change, which is unfortunate.
The societal norm of a male-dominated workplace is another glaring issue. On the junior level, there are seemingly many females within the ad industry, but on the senior level, it’s still 1% to 2%. McCann has done studies on gender equality in Japan and it’s still very bleak. Out of 170 countries, Japan ranks 143rd in terms of the percentage of females in management positions.
There have been some public movements recently about it. But when it comes to action, though, companies are still mainly run by old Japanese men. Unless they’re held accountable, or have that change of mindset and learn from what’s going on in the world, then it’s certainly going to be a slow and uphill battle.
Where is the progress to be made?
You can tell that they’re trying. It’s difficult for people to work here without language ability. But they need that support from the international markets and expertise to come in, not to show them how it’s done, but to learn how things are done differently. And different perspectives on addressing problems – I think that’s why it helps to be a bit more multicultural, or internationally-minded. But people are generally averse to conflict. Speaking out and being different is seen as against the norm. People don’t voice their problems often enough in my opinion. Meanwhile in Western cultures, if something upsets a group of people, somebody is going to protest. That doesn’t happen here. You have to be very bold to take part and join those movements locally.
Is there anything that you think you’d never understand about Japan?
Japan has one of, if not, the greatest brand images in the world. The spirit of omotenashi (exceptional hospitality & customer service) gives people this elevated idea or imagination of Japan. But I dare you to scratch the surface, find out the real reason and origin of some societal aspects and look past what you’re being shown. For example, did you know the camera shutter sound on any mobile phone in Japan cannot be turned off? This is to deter perverts from taking inappropriate photos on the train. Japan has dirty laundry just like any other country.
What’s your experience as an American man in Japan in general but also in the PR and Comms industry?
98% of the jobs in Japan require full Japanese proficiency. The remaining 2% are the rare occurrences that foreigners are sometimes needed to help drive things in different ways, either for the local market or from a regional/global perspective based in Japan. Not including English teachers. The industry is small but slowly growing for foreigners in general, however, experiences vary greatly by the work environment you are in. If your team is internationally diverse with smart, future-focused leadership – you’re in a good spot as a foreigner. If it’s mostly local Japanese – chances are you speak Japanese already and thus have a deeper connection to the market, or you don’t in which case you may want to prepare yourself for challenges ahead.
How would you describe the PR/media landscape in Japan?
Japan creativity is notoriously unconventional. PR/Media are for the most part still very traditional given 30% of the population are considered elderly, one of the oldest nations in the world – however, the way they are communicated is something that continues to amaze me. From a talking mascot for a property rental site (Suumo), to a series of dramatic yet hilarious love-triangle stories for a chewing gum brand (The Long Long man) – the tenets of being attention-grabbing and telling interesting/funny stories still hold true.
You’re from the USA and living and working across the globe, in Singapore, in Vietnam, and now in Tokyo, how do you reflect on your journey and if you want to share one thing that you’ve learnt from that journey, what would it be?
Life begins outside of your comfort zone! Something about settling in life doesn’t sit well with me. Normal? What is normal? There is a great big world out there to explore and make an interesting life in.
The cultures of the US and Japan are different in so many aspects. Japan is very much a masculine and collective culture whilst the US is completely opposite. Have you ever felt like you need to compress yourself, if you like, to be able to adapt to living in Japan?
Yes absolutely. It is important to leave the naivety at home. Your way is not the only way and there should be a level of adaptiveness to (any) market that you truly listen and learn vs. coming into an environment thinking you have all the answers. Oftentimes the biggest challenges I faced was misunderstandings in the process – the solutions and outcomes were the same, we just have different ways of arriving to them.
One of the things that stood out for me about Japan is that respect for age and status is very important in Japanese culture, with hierarchy affecting all aspects of social interactions, which university you went to or your marital status is also important. Coming from a country of pretty much freedom, what’s your reflection on this?
These aspects are not truly unique to Japan – in fact, most countries see social standings, your university, rank or hierarchy in a company as important factors on how people treat or see you. A major difference in where this comes from is Japan’s conservatism vs. the West’s liberalism. I do hope some far more important topics would be talked about and actioned on more here like how they are in the US – gender inequality, overwork culture, infidelity. Going against the machine and being outspoken is not the norm, but with collective voices and forward-looking leadership it can happen – hopefully sooner rather than later.
You’ve written a book on how business can expand their brands to markets in the APAC region, what would you say are the things that people should be mindful of when they enter those markets?
Actually, this is going through extensive revisions to include COVID factors! APAC is the most diverse market in the world, and where 4-5 billion people live within the range of a six-hour flight. One size will never fit all, and if brands look to win it is fundamental to think global but act local – from activations or partnerships to digital content. And be sure to find trusted partners that know the ropes and what makes local consumers tick because it is certainly a relationship-based industry.
Tell us something must-not-do in Japan.
What you must not do in Japan: If you are not Japanese, don’t TRY to be. Be yourself, but consciously inclusive.
What’s next for you and how to keep up with Shabaz Hussain?
Making moves into my next chapter – I’ve recently founded my own creative content agency called Rawa Studios with a few key partners, focusing more on the APAC region and fulfilling the rising demand in the world of branded content partnerships in entertainment, gaming, and tech.
Check us out here.
Add me on LinkedIn.
Or find out more on my marketing consultancy.
Hi, it's me Son. I'm the one behind the blog Son Talks. I mean, I'm happy to verify I'm not a robot. Can easily spot cars or chimneys. I'm working as an Account Executive at Intent Health. You can reach me via LinkedIn at Son Pham or Twitter at @beyondson_ If you or someone you know would be happy to share their perspective, please get in touch, I’d love to hear from you. Over and out! See ya soon x