265 Nate Hoernig Founder Humble Bunny

“Leaders are responsible for laying the road of brick, clearing the fog, and saying, that’s our path.”

“If leaders are going to be strict on people, they must be even stricter on themselves.”

“Trust isn’t built once—it rises when things go well and degrades when the company struggles.”

“Ideas should begin without judgment; the mindset must be ‘how could we make it work?’”

“A leader can’t just do the work for people—the role is to show the way forward.”

Previously, Nate was Create Director at Nikko International.  He graduated in Graphic Design from Indiana University Bloomington.

What makes leadership in Japan unique?
Leadership in Japan requires navigating humility, consensus, and a conservative approach to risk. Hoernig explains that Japanese professionals often prioritise stability, influenced by parents and grandparents, making it harder for start-ups to recruit talent. Unlike Western markets, where independence is prized, in Japan family approval plays a decisive role.

How do global executives succeed in Japan?
Success requires adapting strategies to Japan’s consumer behaviour. Hoernig’s team created a framework addressing eight “lenses” of Japanese decision-making. By applying this, brands saw a 5.7x improvement in results, overcoming the common underperformance foreign companies face. This structured, fact-based approach has proven critical for trust-building and credibility.

What leadership style works best with Japanese teams?
Hoernig stresses flexibility, conscientiousness, and systems over personality. His monthly surveys, “hands in sessions,” and “widening the diamond” lexicon provide avenues for staff to contribute safely. Japanese employees, he notes, respond well when given structure, opportunities to learn, and flexibility rarely found in domestic corporations.

How can small firms build trust in a market dominated by giants?
Trust in Japan is built less on contracts and more on promises kept. Even when business downturns hit, Hoernig emphasised delivering on commitments and maintaining transparency with staff and clients. This long-term relational focus often outweighed short-term losses, reinforcing the company’s credibility.

What is Hoernig’s definition of leadership?
For Hoernig, leadership means clearing the fog, laying the road ahead, and pointing to the destination. Leaders must balance functional direction — milestones, goals, frameworks — with personal growth, empathy, and resilience. In Japan, where ambiguity and indirectness dominate, clarity and consistency are essential for teams to follow with confidence.

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