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Elizabeth Masamune
Managing Director of @Asia Associates Japan

About Elizabeth Masamune

Based in Tokyo, Elizabeth is Managing Director of @Asia Associates Inc, Japan, her boutique advisory firm focussing on cross-cultural communication and leadership for the next generation, particularly women.

Elizabeth has spent over 25 years on the ground in Asia in international trade promotion, as Senior Trade Commissioner for Austrade in Japan, Korea, and Vietnam. In Indonesia, she pioneered a program connecting Australian companies with Japanese firms in Asia.

She was recognised in the 2006 Queens Birthday Honours with the Public Service Medal. Fluent in Japanese and married for 23 years to her graphic designer husband Toshi, when she is not caring for her 19 year old cat Max, she enjoys ikebana and wearing her kimono in her spare time.

articles by Elizabeth Masamune

09 May 2019

Japan: entering the Reiwa era

Elizabeth Masamune | Managing Director of @Asia Associates Japan

Celebrations in Japan have erupted at the beginning of a new era, so will Reiwa really bring beautiful harmony?

11 Feb 2019

The future of Japan’s Society 5.0

Elizabeth Masamune | Managing Director of @Asia Associates Japan

A super smart society can be Japan PM Abe’s legacy.

25 Jun 2018

In Japan, politeness always pays

Elizabeth Masamune | Managing Director of @Asia Associates Japan

Good manners make a lasting impression in Japan, where locals try to ensure every moment of a guest’s experience is special.

10 Aug 2017

Fun in Japan on ‘Premium Friday’

Elizabeth Masamune | Managing Director of @Asia Associates Japan

It’s always a challenge to order an improvement in morale - as Japan has found out.

04 Oct 2016

Japan’s workplace culture is at a crossroads

Elizabeth Masamune | Managing Director of @Asia Associates Japan

In a society where being part of a group has traditionally mattered above all else, Japanese people are coming to demand more choices about the way they live their lives. The needs of the individual and the pursuit of personal happiness have come to matter more.

23 May 2016

Is the world finally poised to arrive in Japan?

Elizabeth Masamune | Managing Director of @Asia Associates Japan

Take a stroll down any major thoroughfare in Tokyo, Osaka or Kyoto these days and you are highly likely to catch the patter of Korean, Chinese or Vietnamese, sprinkled with the odd interjection of English, Spanish or French. Close your eyes and it might sound more like walking down Bourke Street in Melbourne or Orchard Rd in Singapore.

07 Mar 2016

Can 'womenomics' really make Japanese women happy? And save the economy?

Elizabeth Masamune | Managing Director of @Asia Associates Japan

'Abenomics', Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe's 'three-arrow approach' to revitalising the world's third-largest economy has become well known globally, if not always well understood.

09 Sep 2015

Beep. Are you being served? Bzzzz

Elizabeth Masamune | Managing Director of @Asia Associates Japan

Minami started work at Takashimaya department store in Osaka, Japan in October 2013. Since then she has dealt with over 1,000 customers, honing her sales skills. On her third stint at the store in May this year she was reassigned to the men's shirt department, with a sales target of ¥500,000.

22 Jan 2015

Asia through the looking glass: history a check-point and signpost to business opportunities

Elizabeth Masamune | Managing Director of @Asia Associates Japan

I know this is said often in passing but it is critical I should start by repeating it. It must be recognised the term “Asia” has little meaning beyond a geographical blob on a map – it is a Western colonial concept.