Leadership & Critical Hire Search Expertise for Japan and Asia
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Years in Japan
Tech Recruitment
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Companies
Assisted
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Japan & Asia Pac
Leaders Placed
Elemental Praise
Jon understands what talent is required for fast-growing western startups to succeed in Asia, where distance and cultural differences add complexity to hiring well. Jon’s found several key people for me over the years who were critical to our successful exits. This included a regional leader who remained with us for 7 years up to and beyond IPO and who significantly scaled our business in the market during that time. Jon’s personable, professional, and an excellent technology recruiter.
Mark Smith
Venture Advisor, TCV
When I’m asked by industry peers to refer a trusted Asia search specialist I introduce them to Jon. I’ve worked with him over the 20 years covering my time with Fortinet, Blue Coat, Nicira, and now Nutanix. As long as I’ve known him, he's been well-connected & knowledgeable about the market and he’s consistently delivered great results.
Matt Young
Senior VP & Head of Asia Pacific and Japan @ Nutanix
I hired Jon to spearhead two key Sales executive leader searches in parallel for a fast growing tech company; one to identify a President for Japan and the other for a head of APAC. Jon's process was organized, thorough, and delivered the results I wanted. I hired excellent leaders from the process and I was more than pleased with the process and outcome. I would trust Jon to do the same again, next time!
Ray Smets
CEO, Napatech
Elemental Services
Executive search
Elemental provide Executive Search solutions to technology-related companies entering and operating in the Asia Pacific region.
For over 20 years our team has helped build the Asia businesses of many of the world’s hottest startups and well-known tech companies.
We work across all front office disciplines, as well as back-office HR, Finance, Legal, IS, and Supply Chain. If you have a critical hire and your firm fits into any of the following technology areas, learn how we can help.
Infrastructure
CLOUD/SAAS/AI/ML
Tech services
Electronic
Industrial Tech
Medical Tech
Automotive Tech
Consumer/FinTech
OTHER TALENT ACQUISITION NEEDS
Every hire is important to get right but not every hire requires the same approach.
If you’re a growing firm needing to scale or project-hire, we offer attractive Talent Acquisition solutions through our sister firm, TADirect.
Based on your business plan and anticipated needs we can create a bespoke solution you can rely on until you’re ready to bring your TA function in-house.
Market Entry Support
If you’re thinking of entering Japan or another Asian markets and wish to discuss setting up an entity; or are already here and need ongoing back-office accounting and tax support, we can help.
We have a range of services and decades of experience related to Entity Establishment, Tax Guidance, Bookkeeping, Banking, Corporate & Sales Tax Return Preparations, Audits, Payroll, and more.
Elemental ADVANTAGE
We have a 22 year-long track record of successful executive search in Asia’s technology space, and we guarantee our retained work for 12 months.
FLEXIBILITY
By design, we’re small and not constrained by off-limits requirements in the way that some of our larger competitors are.
RESEARCH
We invest substantial resources into each search project to ensure we’re building and selecting our candidates from the most extensive talent pool possible.
EXCLUSIVITY
We work tirelessly to provide you with an optimal client experience by restricting the number of searches we perform at a given time.
NIMBLENESS
By design, we’re small and not constrained by off-limits requirements in the way that some of our larger competitors are.
RESEARCH
We invest substantial resources into each search project to ensure we’re building and selecting our candidates from the most extensive talent pool possible.
TRANSPARENCY
If we don’t feel we can expeditiously provide you with the perfect-fit leader or talent your business requires, we will tell you upfront — and we’ll help find you someone who can.
EXCLUSIVITY
We work tirelessly to provide you with an optimal client experience by restricting the number of searches we perform at a given time.
GUARANTEE
We measure success by the value we add to your organization over time which is why we guarantee our retained work for 12 months.
In the end, our professional network, market experience, dogged research, and thorough vetting mean you can be confident you’ll be hiring from the most extensive and relevant talent pool available.
TRANSPARENCY
If we don’t feel we can expeditiously provide you with the perfect-fit leader or talent your business requires, we will tell you upfront — and we’ll help find you someone who can.
GUARANTEE
We measure success by the value we add to your organization over time which is why we guarantee our retained work for 12 months.
In the end, our professional network, market experience, dogged research, and thorough vetting mean you can be confident you’ll be hiring from the most extensive and relevant talent pool available.
ELEMENTAL PROCESS
After any search you should feel confident your hire reflects the best available candidate in the market. In our experience, the best results come with close client partnering. To give confidence and ensure alignment with our clients, we offer a highly transparent search process.
MORE CLIENT VOICES
Jon’s successfully closed numerous important searches for me and I would absolutely recommend him.
James Brear
CEO, Swimlane
I first connected with Jon when I needed to establish an operation in Japan for Kollective. Jon brought us a solution that enabled us to set up an entity with ease and quickly hire the expertise we’d need to support our local partners. The hires we made are excellent and continue to perform well for us. And in addition to having received expert guidance on the tax and legal implications of each entity option available, four years later we continue to utilize the ongoing banking and accounting support his solution offered. Jon offered us a genuinely useful service that allowed us to set up in Japan without getting bogged down with legal and administrative details.
Dan Vetras
CEO, Kollective Technology
I have used Elemental to hire country managers for me multiple times and have always found them to be quick, efficient and knowledgeable about the type of candidate who would be suitable as well as the pros and cons of many of the available talents. They understand many areas of telecomms and IT supplier and service providers.I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend Elemental to anyone looking for staff in Japan and more widely within Asia.
Diarmid Massey
CEO, Data Center @ ESR
Over the last 20 years I’ve used Elemental to make several key hires across Asia — and I’ve never been disappointed. They are especially competent in the Japan market which is one of the more difficult markets in Asia to hire the best people you can. Elemental is willing to sit down with you and give you the benefit of his knowledge of the employment market and best practices.
Simon Naylor
VP Sales Asia Pac and Japan @ Onapsis
I highly recommend Jon's search expertise based on his work for our company. His collaborative approach to finding the *right* candidate is exceptional. His experience and knowledge of the candidate landscape, combined with a genuine desire to understand our company culture and market focus was both refreshing and reassuring. Elemental understands the subtle intricacies of US technology startups wanting to establish a presence in Japan.
Shaun Page
Entrepreneur, Founder & Chief Empowerment Officer @ Food Science & Medical Technologies
Elemental has helped me put in place some key people in Asia including a Japan team to execute several major projects I had going at one point. I very much enjoyed working with them, and if I were still handling Asia, Elemental is the one I would call on for any critical search requirements.
Marc Veelenturf
CEO of Middle East & Turkey and Head of Telecom, Media & Technology for Growing Markets @ Atos
Jon’s successfully closed numerous important searches for me and I would absolutely recommend him.
James Brear
CEO, Swimlane
I first connected with Jon when I needed to establish an operation in Japan for Kollective. Jon brought us a solution that enabled us to set up an entity with ease and quickly hire the expertise we’d need to support our local partners. The hires we made are excellent and continue to perform well for us. And in addition to having received expert guidance on the tax and legal implications of each entity option available, four years later we continue to utilize the ongoing banking and accounting support his solution offered. Jon offered us a genuinely useful service that allowed us to set up in Japan without getting bogged down with legal and administrative details.
Dan Vetras
CEO, Kollective Technology
Over the last 20 years I’ve used Elemental to make several key hires across Asia — and I’ve never been disappointed. They are especially competent in the Japan market which is one of the more difficult markets in Asia to hire the best people you can. Elemental is willing to sit down with you and give you the benefit of his knowledge of the employment market and best practices.
Simon Naylor
VP Sales Asia Pac and Japan @ Onapsis
I have used Elemental to hire country managers for me multiple times and have always found them to be quick, efficient and knowledgeable about the type of candidate who would be suitable as well as the pros and cons of many of the available talents. They understand many areas of telecomms and IT supplier and service providers.I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend Elemental to anyone looking for staff in Japan and more widely within Asia.
Diarmid Massey
CEO, Data Center @ ESR
I highly recommend Elemental’s search expertise based on his work for our company. Their collaborative approach to finding the *right* candidate is exceptional. Their experience and knowledge of the candidate landscape, combined with a genuine desire to understand our company culture and market focus was both refreshing and reassuring. Elemental understands the subtle intricacies of US technology startups wanting to establish a presence in Japan.
Shaun Page
Entrepreneur, Founder & Chief Empowerment Officer @ Food Science & Medical Technologies
Elemental has helped me put in place some key people in Asia including a Japan team to execute several major projects I had going at one point. I very much enjoyed working with them, and if I were still handling Asia, Elemental is the one I would call on for any critical search requirements.
Marc Veelenturf
CEO of Middle East & Turkey and Head of Telecom, Media & Technology for Growing Markets @ Atos
I have been working with Jon (Elemental Founder) since 1999. He has done a great job to my company. Most of all, I treasure his relationship and excellent professionalism. Highly recommended for any company that want to work with in Japan/ Asia.
Tom Ma
Entrepreneur, CEO, Global Strategic Advisor @ Axius Global
I would recommend Elemental to any technology firm looking to build or strengthen a team in the region. They have been a big help in helping us identify senior talent around Asia Pac over the past several years. They are reliable, well-connected, and consistently add value throughout the search process.
Paul Gracie
Vice President Sales @ BlastWave
It was about 20 years ago when I first worked with Jon to hire a Country Manager for my Japan operation. Since then he's successfully handled numerous Asia-regional assignments for me in the data analytics and network sectors and I look forward to working with him again. I'm very happy to endorse his work. Not only is he the best recruiter I have worked with in Asia he is also a phenomenal human being and a lot of fun to work with!
John Gillespie
CEO, Digital Outcomes
I have been working with Jon (Elemental Founder) since 1999. He has done a great job to my company. Most of all, I treasure his relationship and excellent professionalism. Highly recommended for any company that want to work with in Japan/ Asia.
Tom Ma
Entrepreneur, CEO, Global Strategic Advisor @ Axius Global
I would recommend Elemental to any technology firm looking to build or strengthen a team in the region. They have been a big help in helping us identify senior talent around Asia Pac over the past several years. They are reliable, well-connected, and consistently add value throughout the search process.
Paul Gracie
Vice President Sales @ BlastWave
It was about 20 years ago when I first worked with Jon to hire a Country Manager for my Japan operation. Since then he's successfully handled numerous Asia-regional assignments for me in the data analytics and network sectors and I look forward to working with him again. I'm very happy to endorse his work. Not only is he the best recruiter I have worked with in Asia he is also a phenomenal human being and a lot of fun to work with!
John Gillespie
CEO, Digital Outcomes
From JON UNDERLAND
Since 1999 I’ve been working with tech-related firms of all sizes start, grow and revitalize their businesses in Japan & Asia by connecting them with key leadership, critical hires, and top-performing teams. And having helped well over 100 startups enter the region over this time, I’ve learned how to identify the cultural fit necessary for durable, successful hires.
In the past, I co-founded and grew a highly successful Executive Search firm to 150 people across the Asia region. Today, through Elemental, I offer a personalized, boutique service that is both thorough and cost-effective. We excel in market entry, start-ups, hyper-growth, confidential, and time-sensitive searches. We limit the number of projects we undertake at any given time to ensure we’re well-resourced for the projects we do accept.
I’d very much welcome any opportunity to discuss whether Elemental might be useful to your Asia plans, now or in the future.
Our PROMISE
We’ll help you get it right the first time. Especially in Japan, but across the Asia region, critical search mis-hires are common. At Elemental, we have a track record of placing talented performers who meet and exceed client expectations. And we guarantee our results.
Japan Hiring Market: What to Expect
If you’ve already recruited in Japan, then you’re aware of the challenges of recruiting here as well as the underlying reasons for these challenges. If your frame of reference is North America, Europe, or Southeast Asia, however, you might be surprised at how different this market is. Because we’re so frequently asked about it we created a quick page explaining some of the reasons
DEAR Candidates
While we work closely with and for our clients, our talented candidates are the key to both our success and the success of our clients. We welcome you to provide information regarding your experience and skills by submitting your CV here.
Did we contact you? For further information regarding our candidate outreach, check our Candidate FAQ here.
GET IN TOUCH
Looking for proven search expertise to identify critical talent for your operations in the Asia Pac region? Speak with us, we can help.