Chief Business Transformation Officer discusses Advertising Week and disruption in Japan
We recently caught up with Emmanuel Flores Elias, Chief Business Transformation Officer at Dentsu Isobar to discuss his recent session at Advertising Week Asia and disruption in Japan.
Hi Manu — Congratulations for successfully delivering a session at Advertising Week Asia 2019. How do you feel about that?
Thank you, it was big fun and I loved it. Great experience!
You have a very interesting background; can you tell us about that?
Well, I am Mexican and was born in Mexico City, and I moved to Europe when I was young to study. I lived in Europe for 19 years and after that I came to Japan a year and a half ago. Since then, I have been working at Dentsu Isobar in the Tokyo office.
Japan can be defined differently depending on your experience and expertise so tell us, what is Japan to you?
Japan is many things for many people, and in my particular case, I like to call it the “Nippon Platform” (Nippon is another way to refer to Japan in Japanese).
To me, it is a very interesting business platform, a playground that is fueled by two ingredients: One is opportunity, for what is happening in business right now. The other ingredient is the element of surprise, for the emergence of things that no one expects.
I feel we need to be ready for deep digitalisation, huge business transformation, because they are unfolding in a very unique way. Japan is a place to make fantastic business and to get inspired because it is a gateway to the regional business space. It has also now become home for my wife and our baby!
Based on your experience across multiple markets, what is your advice for people coming in here?
When coming to Japan, you need to be ready to be surprised. Being a key player in APAC, Japan is the market that will continue to evolve along technology, commerce and its proximity to social and the changes in the mobile segment.
These make Japan an incredible place to find great business innovation so having patience is essential as things operate differently compared to other markets. This applies to communication, business, and having the flexibility to welcome possibility and unique processes is important as they may be altogether new.
Being able to change our mindset about business in Japan will require us to be ready at all times because APAC is changing at an accelerated rate, and the conditions around technology.
The concept of the “Nippon Platform” is really powerful. How did you come up with that?
From my experience in China, I have the impression of APAC as more than an economic unit. This is a place where transformation is happening independently, and businesses have the option to select what works best for them. While some of its markets are more mature, others have emerging business blueprints coming up. I see the Nippon Platform as a playground with significant business impact for all the region and believe there is still much more to do, to be invented and developed. It is helpful for me, because it lets me have a bigger picture.
What do you see as key areas for business opportunity right now as we approach 2020?
I definitely see Commerce. It is becoming a fundamental part of the day-to-day life here and I see there will be great transformation and revolution in this space. This is one of the biggest opportunities within the agency segment in Japan. We are trying to apply the experience we have with media and use that knowledge into our commerce practice.
In fact, many different business models are coming from APAC and they are creating a revolution in commerce.
Secondly, I see a big impact on social interactions. Mobile and social have been continuously expanding in the last few years. They continue to redefine connectivity, communication and interactions. Japan still has plenty of room to grow in these spaces and the world can learn from that.
Finally, living in Japan has many perks, transportation, food, cleanliness, Etc. How has it been for you?
Japan has been always close to me and I’ve always enjoyed nature. The northern part of the country has beautiful nature and I’ve been spending more time exploring it. This escape bridges the vibrant Tokyo life with a peaceful moment of relaxation for me and my family.
What I like about it the most is the contrasting experience that co-exists with the idea of Japan as being only about urbanity, technology and robots that many have. Retreating to a place that is full of beautiful nature gives me great perspective.
