Mr. Tomoyuki Watanabe

Vice President - Managing Director, Japan & Grants

Mr. Tomoyuki Watanabe had previously been the Japan Representative of the United States-Japan Foundation since September 2012. He also serves as Deputy Program Director for its US-Japan Leadership Program.

He started his career with a major Japanese manufacturing company, Asahi Glass, in various domestic and international human resources leadership roles, including three years as HR Director in a company start-up project in Indonesia, as well as two years of MBA at Harvard Business School (corporate sponsorship). He was HR Director and Member of the Board at SC Johnson Japan. Mr. Watanabe spent seven years at a leading European executive search firm, Egon Zehnder International’s Tokyo Office, and most recently ran the Tokyo operation of DHR International, a Chicago-based executive search firm, as Managing Director.

As for his non-profit activities, he spent two years assisting Dr. Tomoyoshi Noda in the early stage of establishment of a now leading leadership institution, Institute for Strategic Leadership (ISL), as one of the founding members and Co-Program Director.

Mr. Watanabe is a founding officer and currently an active, core member of a leading non-profit organization which aims to identify, develop and encourage social entrepreneurs and next generation business leaders in Japan – ISL (Institute for Strategic Leadership).