Post Type Description
Co-Founder | CPO | Headhunter Steve Olsen LEGAL (IN-HOUSE GROUP), TOKYO Independent Agent To me, recruiting is the art of promoting clients and careers — simultaneously. We founded Zensho in 2003 to recruit attorneys (for law firms and corporations). We’ve grown. Now Zensho covers six industries (Legal, Life Sciences, Technology, Consumer & Advertising, Industrial & …
Partner Willem Otsuji-Kra FINANCIAL & PROFESSIONAL SERVICES, TOKYO Independent Agent ASK ME ABOUT Working for the welfare of impoverished children in the favelas of Sao Paolo, how a Dutchman falls in love with Japan in Ireland, or why honesty really is the best policy. AND FOR THE REST OF THE STORY Willem. Friso. Kraai (“crow”). …
Partner Michael Pearce LEGAL, TOKYO Independent Agent ASK ME ABOUT Giving up everything to move to Japan and apprentice with the last living ninja Grandmaster, my (so far) elusive goal of brewing the perfect craft beer, and reaching the Okuden level of Nihon Buyou (Japanese traditional dance). AND FOR THE REST OF THE STORY A …
Partner Andrew Peters TECHNOLOGY, TOKYO Independent Agent ASK ME ABOUT The feeling behind the wheel of a 1955 MK1 Consul, Lenny McLean – AKA The Guv’nor, AKA “the hardest man in Britain”— doing me a favor, and how I got the nickname Rocker. AND FOR THE REST OF THE STORY He’ll run the table at …
Partner Teppei Tanino LEGAL, TOKYO Independent Agent ASK ME ABOUT How rock stole my soul from Kendo, how Hollywood superstar Kevin Spacey almost saw me perform (twice), and my Anglophile penchant for painting in a park with my socks off. AND FOR THE REST OF THE STORY Teppei got his start in legal when a …
Partner Andre Wayand FINANCIAL & PROFESSIONAL SERVICES, TOKYO Independent Agent ASK ME ABOUT Sibilant-ending Hungarian verbs, why Japan is the best despite Japanese being my weakest language, and how I got the nickname “the rocket scientist.” AND FOR THE REST OF THE STORY This man is living proof that nice guys sometimes actually finish first. …
Partner Kumal Dhami LEGAL, LONDON Independent Agent Kumal is a Partner within the Legal Practice Group, focusing on recruiting associates and partners on behalf of law firms. He specialises in Banking and Finance, and Restructuring. Prior to joining Zensho Agency, Kumal worked at another leading consultancy where he completed both contingent and retained lateral hire …
Partner James Perkins LEGAL, LONDON Independent Agent In an age when so many people are looking for ways to move to the country, James always had his sights set on the big city. Growing up in the West Country of Somerset, he knew he must make the leap to London. He took a friendly introduction …
Partner Neil Leslie LEGAL, LONDON Independent Agent ASK ME ABOUT Lemons, catching a thief, and the book that lands me in Rome every year. AND FOR THE REST OF THE STORY People say Neil’s an all-or-nothing kind of guy. Which stands to reason: with Cicero and Messi as his idols, he was surely never meant …
Years from now, you may not remember the particulars of deals you closed at Zensho (or what the returns were). You will remember your colleagues and how it felt to work with them. The imprint you left on the world.
We invited you to join our tribe because you impressed us as someone who shares values intrinsic to our culture. But just to ensure we’re totally on the same page, here they are, spelled out in black and white and trimmed in our corporate colors.
Freedom is Zensho’s central pillar. Beyond the mere state of being free, for us the word carries with it a sense of obligation: “Freedom to…” What follows should define you as a person. Of course, to provide your business community with amazing service, but also to engage and give back to the world. And that’s where Autonomy comes in. Unlike the general implications of self-rule, ours leads not to detachment but to a broad and radical sense of interconnectivity. One that enables each of us to commune with others in infinite ways. Together, these two values empower you like nothing else on earth, and they’re here waiting for you.
So, what do we ask in return?
Transparency means not only having open books, but being one yourself. No secrets or ulterior agendas. It is to share personal and industry information without seeking to leverage it for profit or motivate others in any way. Its cousin, Clarity, is about including precision and context in the communication process. At Zensho, we always try to anticipate the details a fellow partner might need and supply them up front.
Which leads us to…
Collaboration. That is, to cooperate meaningfully. Because only through recognizing individual strengths can we thrive as a whole. For us, collaboration requires presence as we listen and respond, evolving toward a collective goal represented by the name of our charity initiative: Ayni (reciprocity). This can’t exist without Collegiality. How we care for each other and the tribe as a whole, share both opportunity and responsibility with open hearts – that’s what empowers us to excel as a firm.
With these six in place, our seventh value happens all by itself.
Harmony. When your environment manifests balance between all people and things – even forces that oppose each other – life just flows. Living completely becomes a state of being. After all, that’s the very meaning of Zensho.