From Japan to Wall Street to Board Rooms: How Improving Communication Skills Can Change Your Career

Everyone knows that effective communication is essential for any functioning organization, but do you wonder if you have strong enough communication skills to get the recognition your work deserves? Convincing colleagues to work with you, and superiors to appreciate your work can be difficult if you are uncomfortable communicating assertively and effectively. Effective communication isn’t just about marketing or elaborate slide decks, it is about seizing the moment with your insights and establishing your presence. How can you ensure you are heard and remembered? What sets exceptional communicators apart from the rest? 

Hear from Japan Society board member Keishi Hotsuki as he shares his journey of moving from Japan to the U.S. with limited English skill to ultimately rising to the C-suite of Morgan Stanley, one of the largest American banking organizations. Through personal stories and humor, this session explains how you can become good communicators even if you are non-native speakers.

By joining this session, you will learn how to:

• Establish Presence in Meetings
• Deliver Impactful Presentations
• Negotiate with Assertiveness
• Build Positive Relationships
• Use listening as a Strategic Tool
• Become a Communicator Who Inspires Actions

Agenda
6:30 – 7:30pm: Lecture and Q&A
7:30 – 8:00pm: Reception

About the Speaker
Keishi Hotsuki is a Vice Chairman of Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group and a Board Member of SMBC Nikko Securities. Mr. Hotsuki was the Chief Risk Officer of Morgan Stanley from 2011 to 2023 after he joined the firm in 2008 as the Head of Market Risk Management. Mr. Hotsuki began his career at Fuji Bank in 1984, where he worked primarily in the Fixed Income Trading Division. From 1993 to 1999, Mr. Hotsuki worked at Bankers Trust as the Head of Market Risk Management Japan/Asia. Mr. Hotsuki joined Merrill Lynch in 1999 as the Head of Market Risk Management for the Japan/Asia Pacific Region and was the Global Head of Market Risk Management from 2005 to 2007. Mr. Hotsuki holds a Bachelor’s degree in Economics from Hitotsubashi University and a Masters of Science in Industrial Administration from Carnegie Mellon University. Mr. Hotsuki is a Board Member of Japan Society. He is also an advisory Board Member of three university institutes; Tepper School of Business at Carnegie Mellon University, Master of Computation Finance at Carnegie Mellon University and Krieger School of Arts and Sciences at Johns Hopkins University.

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Business & Policy Forum is generously supported by Japan Society Global Leaders & Corporate Partners.

Global Leaders

Corporate Partners

Japan Society’s 120th anniversary initiatives and related programs are generously supported by Champion Sponsor, MUFG Bank, Ltd.; Advocate Sponsor, Mizuho Americas; and Friend Sponsor, Mitsubishi Corporation (Americas).