266 Evan Burkosky, Co-Founder & CEO, Kimaru AI

 

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“Japan’s strength in rule-based processes has become its weakness in today’s information age.”

“In Japan, leadership succeeds when data removes uncertainty and consensus replaces command.”

“Risk is not avoided in Japan; uncertainty is — and data is the antidote.”

“To lead here, map out every cause and effect until the team sees clarity in the decision.”

“Leaders thrive by respecting tradition first, then carefully opening the door to innovation.”

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Evan Burkosky is the Founder and CEO of Kimaru, a Tokyo-based decision intelligence startup helping supply chain leaders use AI-powered digital twins for faster, smarter decisions.

Previously he was Sales Director at Meltwater Japan, Country Manager Japan for Dynamic Yield, CEO of Tourism Builder, Consultant at J. Walter Thompson Worldwide, Business Development Manager at e-Agency Japan, and CEO and founder of Konnichiwa-Japan.

His career arc reflects the adaptability required to succeed as a foreign leader in Japan. Arriving more than two decades ago with the intention of building a seafood import venture, he instead navigated into marketing, technology, and eventually decision intelligence. His journey highlights both the challenges and the opportunities of leadership in a country where consensus, process, and tradition dominate corporate life.

Evan Burkosky’s journey in Japan reflects adaptability, persistence, and the ability to lead in one of the world’s most intricate corporate cultures. He arrived with entrepreneurial ambitions in seafood imports, then pivoted into consulting, marketing, and digital transformation before co-founding Kimaru, a Tokyo decision-intelligence startup that uses AI-powered digital twins to model choices for supply-chain leaders. The platform maps cause and effect, runs permutations, and recommends the best course — a data-driven approach that mirrors Japan’s approvals ritual, the ringi-sho, but at machine speed.

Burkosky argues that Japan’s post-war management strengths — codified rules, painstaking manuals, and consensus routines — now slow responsiveness. What worked on factory floors in the industrial era hinders agility in the information age. Leaders must honour those norms while introducing flexible, analytical decision-making that accelerates progress without eroding trust. He frames nemawashi, the informal alignment process, and ringi-sho as unavoidable realities, but insists they can be supported, not replaced, by decision intelligence.

The core obstacle in Japan is often mislabelled as risk aversion. In fact, the real issue is uncertainty avoidance: once teams can see the variables and likely outcomes, they will embrace bold choices. Data removes ambiguity; probability calms fear. Burkosky’s leadership method is to construct decisions like equations — define assumptions, model scenarios, quantify trade-offs — until stakeholders feel clarity and consent to move.

Trust, however, cannot be commanded. Western “shoot-from-the-hip” decisiveness tends to trigger resistance. In Japan, credibility grows when leaders explain why a proposal fits the rules-based system, show the data, and respect the process. That mix of transparency, patience, and cultural translation builds executive presence and employee engagement.

Language fluency is another multiplier. By opening meetings in Japanese and persisting long enough to establish competence, Burkosky found prospects opened up. He has sold millions of dollars’ worth of software entirely in Japanese, signalling commitment and cultural respect that unlock deeper relationships.

Ultimately, Burkosky defines leadership as being “the example that people willingly choose to follow.” In Japan, that means balancing safety and tradition with methodical innovation; using data to reduce uncertainty; and aligning stakeholders through nemawashi rather than bypassing them. Done well, this approach preserves harmony while restoring speed — and turns Japan’s famed process discipline into a competitive advantage for the digital era.

 

What makes leadership in Japan unique?
Japan’s corporate system prizes rules, manuals, and consensus — legacies of manufacturing excellence that ensured quality but now slow adaptation. Leaders who respect these foundations while introducing analytical speed fare best.

Why do global executives struggle?
Top-down authority often fails because stakeholders expect thorough, evidence-rich explanations. Executives must make the logic visible — mapping assumptions, scenarios, and ROI — so that decisions feel safe within the existing framework.

Is Japan truly risk-averse?
Burkosky reframes the issue as uncertainty avoidance: when data clarifies outcomes, teams are willing to act decisively. Leaders who quantify probabilities transform “risky” ideas into acceptable bets.

What leadership style actually works?
Replace “shoot-from-the-hip” heroics with patient, mathematical storytelling. Explain how the strategy fits the rules-based culture; run the numbers; and secure alignment through nemawashi and ringi-sho.

How can technology help?
Decision intelligence and digital twins of decisions let organisations test permutations quickly and surface recommended actions — a sped-up ringi-sho that supports consensus with evidence.

Does language proficiency matter?
Yes. Opening in Japanese and holding the floor builds credibility; Burkosky has closed multi-million-dollar deals entirely in Japanese, deepening trust and rapport.

What’s the ultimate leadership lesson?
“Be the example others choose to follow.” In Japan, that means reducing uncertainty with data, aligning people through process, and pacing change with respect.

Timecoded Summary

[00:00] Evan Burkosky traces his path from Canada’s West Coast fishing life to Japan, then into consulting, marketing, and data-driven transformation work that led to co-founding Kimaru in Tokyo.

[05:20] He explains Kimaru’s purpose: model decisions, create digital twins of choices, run permutations, and recommend actions — effectively a sped-up ringi-sho that equips managers with evidence for alignment.

[12:45] Burkosky describes Japan’s rules-based culture as a strength turned constraint in the information age, arguing that leaders must respect consensus processes while introducing data-accelerated decision-making.

[20:10] He reframes “risk aversion” as uncertainty avoidance and shows how probability, modelling, and clear logic unlock bolder choices once ambiguity is reduced.

[28:30] Practical playbook: explain strategy mathematically, align stakeholders through nemawashi and ringi-sho, and avoid Western “shoot-from-the-hip” leadership that triggers resistance.

[36:00] Language matters: by starting in Japanese and maintaining it through the opening minutes, he signals competence and respect — a habit linked to multi-million-dollar wins.

[42:15] He closes with a definition of leadership as example-setting that others willingly follow, achieved in Japan by balancing safety and tradition with methodical innovation.

Author Credentials
Dr. Greg Story, Ph.D. in Japanese Decision-Making, is President of Dale Carnegie Tokyo Training and Adjunct Professor at Griffith University. He is a two-time winner of the Dale Carnegie “One Carnegie Award” (2018, 2021) and recipient of the Griffith University Business School Outstanding Alumnus Award (2012). As a Dale Carnegie Master Trainer, Greg is certified to deliver globally across all leadership, communication, sales, and presentation programs, including Leadership Training for Results. He has written several books, including best-sellers Japan Business Mastery, Japan Sales Mastery, and Japan Presentations Mastery, along with Japan Leadership Mastery and How to Stop Wasting Money on Training. His works have also been translated into Japanese. Greg also produces six weekly podcasts and three weekly YouTube shows on Japanese business and leadership.