Job Application Tips for Japan

Neil Shepherd, HR Business Partner based in Tokyo, Japan, shares what he considers most important when interviewing and what he believes is necessary to make a positive first impression.

_{^{This article is posted on Sartorius Blog.}}

Neil, a well written CV is important. What is the best way to structure it?

Typically, Japanese companies have very specific expectations of how a CV should be written, but global companies in Japan, such as Sartorius, are usually much more flexible in terms of format.

When I look at a CV, I like to be able to easily see the candidate's basic profile information somewhere near the top. A professional-looking profile photo can also help to create a positive first impression.

Personally, I would recommend not including too much detail in the CV, but enough structured information to get a general idea of the person and the career path and highlights.

I would recommend not including too much detail in the CV, but enough structured information to get a general idea of the person and the career path.

Neil Shepherd, HR Business Partner, Tokyo, Japan

Which information must be included?

I like to take a quick look at the candidate's journey, from the last steps of their education to the present. What I look for is the relevance for the industry and roles they have experience in so far, how long they have stayed with each company, the reasons behind each change of company and/or role, whether there seems to be a logical direction in their career development so far and whether there are any unexplained gaps.

Sometimes candidates simply list the names of the companies they have worked for. For me, however, some additional information about each company is helpful, especially if the company is not well-known in the same industry. For example, what industry is the company operating in? How many employees are there in the Japanese entity?

It's also good to see when candidates make the effort to include some brief information about the type of environment and role they're looking for. It is beneficial to mention specific aspects of Sartorius and the role that they find particularly attractive.

You mentioned gaps in the CV - what about them?

Career gaps are not necessarily a problem if you can briefly explain somewhere in the CV what you did during that time. However, if there are gaps after more than one company the candidate has worked for, additional explanation would be even more important.

What do you look for in an interview?

Two things are important to me: a candidate's personality and how they communicate and respond to different types of questions in a professional, thoughtful way. Although specific experience may be a "must" for some roles. I believe that at the end of the day it's a candidate's personality, mindset and passion that will determine their fit with the company and the role, so it's very important for me to be able to get a clear sense of these things through the interview process.

What are the absolute no-nos in a job interview?

Above all, dishonest answers. This can either take the form of an apparent contradiction between a candidate's answers to different questions, or the candidate giving the impression that they are trying to give the "perfect" answer that they think the interviewer wants to hear.

Visual communication is also critical, particularly if you're being interviewed virtually. I think it's very important for candidates to make sure they're participating in the interview from an appropriate, quiet environment, and to use background effects (such as blurring) when necessary. A lack of either of these can unfortunately create a less professional overall impression.

Find All Job Vacancies in Japan and Apply Today