Episode 61

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Published on:

15th Dec 2024

Developing Successful Leaders in Japan, with Paul Dupuis

The latest FocusCore Salary Guide is here: 2025 Salary Guide

On this episode of the FocusCore podcast we are joined by global leadership expert Paul Dupuis. Paul has over 25 years of professional experience in multiple countries across Asia including Japan, Singapore, Hong Kong, South Korea and India. He is also the founder and CEO of Take-5 Global K.K., a consultancy firm focused on coaching, business advisory, leadership development and M&A in Japan and India. Paul joins us to share some of his insights into being a great leader in Japan and globally, as well as how to grow and develop successful leaders in your company.  

In this episode you will hear:

  • What foreign companies admire about Japanese business culture
  • Universal tenets of good leadership
  • How to succeed as a business leader in Japan
  • The importance of listening more than you speak
  • How trust helps empower and enable people to be great leaders
  • Paul’s 5 E’s of leadership from his book; The E5 Movement



Things mentioned in the episode:

Paul’s book; The E5 Movement: https://e5-movement.com/

The Japanese version; The 5 Golden Rules of Leadership:

https://e5-movement.com/%E6%97%A5%E6%9C%AC%E8%AA%9E

Hockey Foundation Website: https://hockeyfoundation.org/



About Paul Dupuis:

Paul Dupuis is the founder and CEO of Take-5 Global K.K., a consultancy firm focused on coaching, business advisory, leadership development and M&A in Japan and India. 


Paul has over 25 years of professional experience in multiple countries across Asia including Japan, Singapore, Hong Kong, South Korea and India. Prior to founding Take-5 Global K.K., Paul was CEO & Chairman of Randstad Japan (2021-2023) where he led one of the largest operating companies for Randstad globally to achieve exceptional revenue growth and record profitability. During his tenure as MD and CEO of Randstad India (2017-2021), he led the turnaround of the company to become the leader in the Indian market. Paul was recognized by Great Place to Work® Institute (India) as one of India’s Best Leaders in Times of Crisis 2021. From 2011-2013 he was based in Singapore as Head of Asia for en-japan (TSE 4849.t). 


A recognized thought leader, Paul frequently appears in media, and is a guest speaker at MBA schools and professional associations across Asia on topics related to Japan & India, with a focus on transformational leadership, high performance, team building, strategy and organizational development. He is a member of the MBA Faculty at GLOBIS University Graduate School. He is a non-executive Board Member of T.Hasegawa, a publicly listed company (TSE 4958). Paul is a member of the Board of Directors of HOPE International Sustainable Development Agency (JP), focusing on clean water projects and microcredit programs in Cambodia, Sudan and the Philippines, with a mission to help the neglected poor become self-reliant. 


Paul is fully bilingual in English and Japanese. He published his first book on leadership, The E5 Movement in June 2020.  In 2023, the best-selling Japanese version was published: The 5 Golden Rules of Leadership. 


Paul is an active member of the Japan Association of Corporate Executives (Keizai Doyukai), and is the Vice-chairman of the marketing committee of the Japan Ice Hockey Federation. He is a passionate ice hockey player and volunteers every winter as a coach and supporter of ice hockey in the remote part of the Himalayas in Northern India. He is a Guinness World Record holder, as the organizer of an ice hockey game at the highest elevation ever, on a frozen lake in Ladakh in the Himalayas of northern India (4,361m above sea level).




Connect with Paul Dupuis:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/pauldupuis/



Connect with David Sweet:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/drdavidsweet/ 

Twitter: https://twitter.com/focuscorejp 

Facebook: :https://www.facebook.com/focuscoreasia

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/focuscorejp/ 

Website: https://www.japan.focuscoregroup.com/ 


“Doin’ the Uptown Lowdown,” used by permission of Christopher Davis-Shannon. To find out more, check out www.thetinman.co. Support independent musicians and artists.

Mentioned in this episode:

Find out more about salaries, the job market, hiring and what's important to both companies and individuals looking for a job specifically in Japan.

2025 Salary Guide

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About the Podcast

The FocusCore Podcast
Meet interesting and inspiring and entertaining people who show why Japan is a unique, fulfilling and sometimes frustrating place to do business.
We will discuss how to hire, train and retain talent. How to create values that motivate, and review best practices that have worked and attempts that have failed. David will be speaking to company presidents, CEOs, CFOs, HR professionals, coaches, consultants as well as sharing with you some of my own experiences and opinions discovered over the years in this great country.
The focus is simple: To explore how to succeed in business in Japan.

About your host

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David Sweet