What motivates Japanese to move to foreign companies?

1) Career perspectives

The "corporate ladder" or "escalator" in Japanese corporations is very elaborate and slow. For some Japanese it is too long and they don't feel challenged enough. Working for a foreign corporation offers fast track career perspectives. Candidates with high potential have the opportunity to assume challenging roles with signficant responsibility irrespective of their age.

2) Money

Money is always a factor and candidates expect foreign firms to offer a salary which is higher than their Japanese competitors. All things being equal, Japanese job seekers still associate foreign companies as riskier than Japanese employers. Thefore they expect a risk premium. A word of caution though: At the risk of sounding trivial, if money is the sole criteria for a candidate switching jobs it is likely that he/she will switch again when the next best offer comes around.

3) International exposure

More so than in the past, there are an increasing number of Japanese who have grown up or lived a few years overseas. Even for those who have not lived overseas, many Japanese are eager to make use of their language skills and/or international mindset. Apart from the major Japanese corporations not many companies can offer an international perspective.

4) No turning back

Once employees leave from a Japanese firm to a foreign one, it will be very difficult for them to return to a Japanese corporation. Japanese corporations look down upon individuals who have switched jobs and are sceptical if this has been done more than once. At the same time, candidates themselves have difficulty returning as they have gotten used to the corporate culture of foreign affiliates.

5) Japanese corporations - not as stable anymore

As previously mentioned, even though foreign employers are still considered riskier than Japanese companies, the faith and trust put in Japanese employers has decreaed considerably over the last few years. Accordingly more candidates are willing to consider working for foreigners when interesting opportunities come their way.