For Japanese mid-level employees in their 30s and 40s who are looking to change jobs to international companies, "professional presentation" and "personal brand" are important themes that cannot be separated. Especially for those with no experience in international companies, you may be worried about how you should promote yourself and what kind of brand image you should build.
In this article, we will reconsider the importance of professional presentation and personal brand, and introduce what measures are important. Please take a look at the concrete ways to push your career to the next stage.
1. Why professional presentation and personal brand are important
“Invisible assets” that accelerate your career
Self-promotion and personal brand are "invisible assets" that convey your strengths and values to those around you. Particularly in international companies, results-based systems and individual independence are respected, so clearly showing what you have accomplished and what areas you specialize in tends to be directly linked to evaluations.
Improving selection success rate through differentiation
In a foreign job search environment where a large number of applicants gather, you need to make an impression on what makes you different from other candidates. If you can get the hiring manager to recognize that you have strengths that are unique to you through professional presentation and personal branding, your chances of passing the application screening and interview will increase.
Supporting sustainable career growth
People with strong branding tend to gain the trust of those around them even after changing jobs, and are able to quickly accelerate their careers. Self-promotion is very effective not only when looking for a job, but also when getting promoted within the company and forming networks. It is important to be aware of this from an early stage when considering long-term career development.
2. Common issues with professional presentation and branding
Challenge 1: Not being clear about my strengths
For people who have worked at Japanese companies for many years, there are cases where they feel that their areas of expertise are vague or that they cannot think of any special accomplishments. In reality, even though they have completed many tasks, they are not sure which areas of their strength would be applicable to international companies.
Challenge 2: Too many abstract expressions and lack of concreteness
Mere expressions such as "I have good communication skills" or "I demonstrate leadership" will not make a sufficient impact on hiring managers. Self-promotion without quantitative results or action examples is likely to appear unpersuasive.
Challenge 3: Limited opportunities to communicate your personal brand
To build a personal brand, it is essential to disseminate information both online and offline. However, if you are not making effective use of LinkedIn and SNS, or if you are not participating in industry communities, you will not be able to communicate your strengths and achievements to those around you.
3. Strategies for effective professional presentation and branding
Strategy 1: Quantify and verbalize your strengths
Rather than relying solely on abstract expressions, it is important to use numbers and anecdotes to show how the results were achieved. For example, if you have concrete data such as “Management of the sales team increased sales by 120% compared to the previous year,” your argument will be much more persuasive.
Strategy 2: Clarify what value you can provide and to whom
When it comes to professional presentation and personal branding, it is not enough to simply list your strengths. By verbalizing what value you bring to recruiters, superiors, and clients, you will create a branding that is unique to you.
Strategy 3: Communicate both online and offline
It is essential to regularly communicate your field of expertise and achievements through LinkedIn and SNS. At the same time, you can build a three-dimensional brand image by increasing your offline exposure, such as speaking at industry conferences and seminars, and participating in community activities.
4. Specific action steps you want to take now
Based on your strategy, here are some concrete steps you can take right away.
Action 1: Take inventory of results using the “STAR method”
Let's organize your past work performance along the lines of Situation, Task, Action, and Result. If you look back not only at success stories but also at the process by which you worked to solve problems, you can build a deeper professional presentation.
Action 2: Update your work history and resume
Ideally, you should update your work history and resume to reflect your daily work and the skills you have learned. If you get into the habit of reviewing regularly, you won't have to panic when you start looking for a new job.
Action 3: Strengthen your communication on LinkedIn
The use of LinkedIn has become commonplace in foreign recruitment. In addition to enriching your profile, you can also post your professional opinions and things you've learned in a blog-like manner to showcase your knowledge and stance. It also helps a lot with networking.
Action 4: Participate in industry events and study sessions
Expanding your network by attending conferences, seminars, and study sessions in your specialized field is directly linked to building your personal brand. Sharing your challenges and success stories with other participants can lead to unexpected business opportunities and recognition.
5. Benefits of GCI’s coaching service “GCAP PIVOT”
Advantage 1: Objectively assess your strengths
For those who are worried about not knowing their strengths, feedback from a professional coach is extremely effective. GCI has a team of coaches who are well-versed in the recruitment situation of foreign-affiliated and global companies, and will dig deep into each candidate's track record and experience to support them in accurately verbalizing their strengths and key points to highlight.
Advantage 2: You can learn “types” of professional presentation and branding
Self-promotion and personal branding are not created solely by "sense" or "feelings." With GCI's coaching service, you can learn highly reproducible "styles" such as how to respond effectively in interviews and how to use SNS. Through this, you will be able to acquire knowledge and skills that can be utilized not only for job search but also for career development after joining.
Advantage 3: Can be integrated with medium- to long-term career strategy
At GCI, we not only provide one-off career move support, but also provide coaching that takes a bird's-eye view of your entire career. For example, you can receive support from perspectives such as “What elements should I strengthen now in order to be active as a leader in a foreign company in five years?” and “How can I brand these strengths to advance my career as quickly as possible?”
Advantage 4: Accompanying program that promotes behavior change
Even if you are taught knowledge and skills, there is no point unless you put them into practice. GCI's coaching is characterized by programs that emphasize not only theory but also "behavioral change." The coach supports you even at the stage of formulating a concrete action plan and putting it into action, creating an environment in which it is difficult to end up as a three-day monk.
6. Summary: Make branding your ally and lead to success in changing jobs with international companies
Strengthening your professional presentation and personal brand will be a major weapon in successfully changing jobs to a foreign company. By verbalizing your strengths and showing specific results, you can give the hiring manager and those around you a clear image that “this person will do well.” Furthermore, if you succeed in branding, you will be able to advance your career and demonstrate leadership after changing jobs, and become the driving force to expand your potential at once.
However, in order to do this, you need to do more than just "introduce yourself"; you need to dig deeper into your own achievements and values, and identify your essential strengths and potential. If you feel that it is difficult to do it on your own, please consider GCI's coaching service "GCAP PIVOT". Our team of coaches who are familiar with foreign-affiliated and global companies will support you in accelerating your branding.
By making the most of your unique strengths and strengthening your professional presentation and personal brand, you should be able to significantly increase your chances of success in changing jobs to a foreign company. Please take a step forward and challenge yourself to a new stage.
If you seriously want to change your career, it's important to take action and not just gather information. Receive coaching, put it into practice, and dramatically increase your brand power. GCI will do our best to support your next step.
Author
Global Career Incubator Co., Ltd. CEO Shinichi Ikawa
Biography: Entered the business world after working for the Ministry of Defense (National Class I) and the Australian Ministry of Defence. After working at a major real estate company, he started a real estate venture and experienced management and recruitment at a domestic fund, domestic business company, and overseas tech company before founding our company.
Developed a career accelerator program based on my experience as a corporate manager and hiring manager. We specialize in foreign-affiliated, bilingual, and senior talent, and support individual career advancement and corporate organizational strength and efficiency.