From Japan to the Netherlands: Yuki about her International Career at Robert Walters

Yuki Shinozaki had been working as a recruiter at Robert Walters in Japan for 5 years when she decided to continue her career in the Netherlands. The country wasn’t entirely new to her: years earlier, she had studied in Utrecht. Still, working in the Netherlands turned out to be quite different from studying here. The organisation felt familiar, but there were plenty of things in the workplace she had to get used to.

‘In the Netherlands I have learnt that sharing a bit of your personal life is part of building relationships’

Why did you want to gain international work experience in the Netherlands?

‘I’m Japanese-Singaporean and did my Bachelor’s degree at Utrecht University. I had an amazing time! Student life here is much freer and more relaxed than in Japan and Singapore. I studied, partied and made a lot of friends here.

After graduating, I returned to Japan and joined Robert Walters. I learned an incredible amount in 5years. You’re thrown in at the deep end and expected to start building your own business from the beginning. That means you grow quickly.

At some point, I started thinking about what I wanted to do over the next few years. I’m 29 and I’m in no rush to become a manager or settle down. I still had friends in the Netherlands, and Robert Walters offered me the opportunity to gain international experience, so everything came together quite naturally.’

You moved to a new country but stayed within the same company. What immediately felt familiar?

‘The obvious things are the same, of course. You use the same systems, you know the processes and you speak the same recruitment language. That helps when you’re starting somewhere new.

But more importantly, I think it’s the way we approach relationships. There’s a strong focus on quality, really listening to someone’s story and the importance of personal contact.

What I also like is that you’re not told exactly how you should do recruitment. If you look at the people who are successful here, no one does it in exactly the same way. Everyone has their own style, and that’s respected. Because if you take the “you” out of someone and make everyone work in exactly the same way, I don’t think it works.’

What did you have to relearn when you started here?

‘Candidates are motivated by very different things in the Netherlands. In Japan, many people stay with the same company for forty years. Even if you offered someone a job with a much higher salary, they might not take it. Loyalty to your employer is very important in Japan.

In the Netherlands, salary and free time can be important drivers. It takes some time to really understand those differences when you start working in a new culture.’

What has surprised you most since moving here?

‘How much Dutch people talk about their private lives in a business conversation! If you ask someone here to introduce themselves, you’ll quickly hear where they live, whether they’re married, whether they have children… or pets, and what their names are.

In Japan, you usually would not share that kind of information in a business setting. So in the beginning, my introduction was: “My name is Yuki Shinozaki, I’m from Japan and this is what I can do for you.” And that was it. But I’ve realised that here, sharing something personal is actually part of building a relationship. I’m still figuring out the right balance. How much do I share? What does someone actually want to know? How much detail should I give about where I live? Do I tell them the city, or the street as well?’

Have you picked up any Dutch habits yet?

‘I’m definitely later for meetings than I used to be. In Japan, you arrive ten or fifteen minutes before a meeting. Here, I’ve reached the point where I can walk into a face-to-face meeting three minutes before it starts. I’ve also learned that it’s okay to share a different point of view with my manager. I’ve found that it can help build a strong relationship and trust. So in that respect, I’ve become very Dutch.

Lunch is a different story. We have a lunch buffet at the office and it’s all really well organised. But I miss Japanese food. One hundred per cent. I’m just a warm-lunch person.’