Originally from the US, Eric Wedemeyer initially lived in Taiwan working in journalism. He then came to Japan in 1980 and started out at a small PR firm, then moved on to working in magazines. Having gained some advertising experience, Mr. Wedemeyer next joined Cove-Ito Advertising as a writer first, eventually becoming the Creative Director, then Vice President of Strategic Marketing Services. He also became Chief Executive of Cove-Ito Interactive, a spin-off company of the original ad agency. Mr. Wedemeyer currently is the Managing Director of Tactus Partners as well as J-Global, Inc., an intercultural management services company.
As Creative Director of Cove-Ito, Mr. Wedemeyer oversaw around 20-30 people during the 1980s through 90s. Having worked in other parts of the world including Taiwan, Mr. Wedemeyer observed that Japanese staff needed more clarity and were reluctant to try out new and different things. Mr. Wedemeyer explains that gaining trust from his Japanese staff was a gradual process, but his knowledge of the foreign advertising market in Japan helped him gain credibility. The marketing agency closed after the 2008 Global Financial Crisis, and Mr. Wedemeyer joined Tactus, where he initially led brand strategy.
On maintaining employee engagement, Mr. Wedemeyer says having a clear direction and purpose gives people a target to aim at, which helps them stay engaged. He also explains how delegating and motivating people to take initiative themselves energizes them. Mr. Wedemeyer recalled one client manufacturing company he worked with who took this idea to heart. The company wanted their workforce to think more about better serving customer needs, and launched an initiative in which the entire company department delivered a presentation to the CEO on their insight. Mr. Wedemeyer says this initiative allowed people to think more about their work and communicate their ideas to the CEO, who was eager to listen to their thoughts. This boosted the organization’s motivation, exceeding what Mr. Wedemeyer had originally envisioned.
Mr. Wedemeyer says branding boils down to being a promise kept. He gives an example: “Our mission is to turn people blue. Then you make what I call a strategic question. You get your people to ask this question about everything that they do no matter where they are in their company and what they're doing. Does this make people blue? How could I change what I'm doing to make people bluer? If everybody in the company is thinking how to answer that one question from a thousand different directions…it really gets the company moving in one direction.”
To newcomers leading in Japan, Mr. Wedemeyer advises them to take time to learn about Japan, such as joining a local networking group like the American Chamber of Commerce Japan, and get some cross-cultural advice from more experienced professionals. He further explains that knowing how a Japanese business operates will enable one to understand why people act in certain ways and be a tremendous time saver. Getting an interpreter is also a way to get valuable insight from the local Japanese businesspeople even if one cannot speak Japanese. Secondly, Mr. Wedemeyer advises to always walk the talk and make sure what you say aligns with your behaviour. Mr. Wedemeyer thinks that learning Japanese is very helpful, but depending on how long people are planning to stay in Japan, it is case by case.
