Lenovo

We are seeking a strong, driven, and accountable leader to be a strategic adviser to our Japan business. This critical leadership role will drive the entire spectrum of communications (corporate & thought leadership, product marketing, issues & crisis, employee and internal, executive profiling, digital communications, and events) through the PESO media (a strategic framework used in marketing and public relations to categorize media into four types: paid, earned, shared, and owned) approach.

Responsibility for the role
The ideal candidate must effectively and collaboratively shape Lenovo’s story in technology innovation, digital transformation, customer experience, ESG, and corporate culture in a refreshing, authentic, and relevant way to Japan. The role will oversee all Lenovo business groups’ communications, including Intelligent Devices Group (including the support to Motorola), Infrastructure Solutions Group (Lenovo Enterprise Solutions G.K.), and Solutions & Services Group. The role will also support NECPC Consumer business as part of the Lenovo Group in Japan. Essentially, the candidate is expected to drive communications strategy and tactics to make Lenovo a famous and credible global tech powerhouse in Japan.

Candidate profile

The candidate must have at least 15 years of experience working in strategic communications, with a mix of in-house and/or communications agency experience. Experience with the technology industry is a plus and not a must. The position directly reports to the Asia Pacific Communication Leader and the dotted reporting line to the Japan marketing head.

The candidate must have the following qualities and experience:

Business, brand, and reputation communications and stakeholder engagement
• A proven track record in bridging communications strategy to business imperatives in the Japanese market
• Extensive experience in working and advising C-level executives, collaborating with multiple internal and external stakeholders at the same time
• Proven experience in shaping corporate brand awareness and improving corporate reputation
• Strong experience in leading issues management and crisis communications
• Rich experience in strategic planning

Strong leadership: leadership influence to lead a team to success, a strong collaborator, and a problem-solving mindset
• Innate ability to be able to balance being strategic with hands-on execution
• It will be a plus if the candidate has a successful track record in leading and growing a team of seasoned communications professionals and communications agencies
• Thrives in a dynamic, fast-paced, and matrixed environment
• Must be comfortable working in a decentralized environment but also collaborating well with central Business Group and global communications teams as required
• Independent, driven, positive, accountable, collaborative, confident, hard-working, meticulous, and able to learn quickly
• Keen to push boundaries, try new things, and initiate ideas

Clear articulation, presentation, and a storyteller
• Stellar writing and presentation skills in Japanese and English; clear communication skills in Japanese and English
• Rich experience in content creation across the communications spectrum, including executive social media content
• Experience in driving employee engagement message development and campaigns

Deep understanding and good navigation of the communications ecosystem
• Excellent grasp of trends and developments in social media and traditional media landscape in Japan
• Deep understanding of the media, influencer, and analyst landscape in Japan
• Strong understanding of social media tools and platforms and how to most effectively leverage these in different context
• Have a primary network of external stakeholders, e.g., media, analysts, influencers, industry key opinion leader

Other points to note
The candidate must be able to travel for work assignments as required as below:
• There is a certain amount of domestic travel involved, but the position does not require constant travel like a traveling sales job
• Potential overseas travels, e.g., 1-2 overseas trips per year