Makana 2.0 · Issue 01 · May 2024
HR, Leadership & Technology Shaping Asia's Future
Makana 2.0, Issue 1: 9 pieces from the Makana Partners network.
In this issue
Issue 1 of Makana 2.0 opens with a letter from editor Yan Sen Lu and three features: Jonathan Stewart on whether skills-based hiring is the future for talent acquisition, Naotaka Momiyama on how he analyses an organization and identifies its challenges, and James Mesbur on navigating a generative AI strategy.
The Makana Partners News section marks the firm's fifth anniversary in English and Japanese and introduces new team members Ella Choi and Jayson Pe Benito. The issue closes with a Market Trends piece on Japan's labor market and a list of recent placements.
Table of contents
- Letter from the Editorp. 5By Yan Sen Lu · Letter from the Editor
Editor Yan Sen Lu introduces Makana 2.0, a quarterly magazine on talent acquisition, leadership and technology with a special focus on Japan and Asia.
- Is Skills-based Hiring the Future for Talent Acquisition?pp. 6–8By Jonathan Stewart · Feature
Jonathan Stewart sets out the pressures facing talent acquisition, the case for defining roles by skills, and why subjectivity and maintenance make skills-based hiring hard to implement today.
- Understanding Organizations and Identify Challengespp. 9–11By Naotaka Momiyama · Feature
An HR leader describes how he analyses a new organization: engagement survey results, one-on-one meetings with stakeholders, and a review of HR mechanisms, over roughly three months.
- A Brave New World: Navigating Your Organization's Generative AI Strategypp. 12–15By James Mesbur · Feature
James Mesbur argues that organizations should start with the business problem, not the technology, and shares the first item of a 10-question checklist for Generative AI projects, using customer support as the example.
- Celebrating 5th Anniversaryp. 16By Makana Partners · News
Makana Partners marks its fifth anniversary with thanks to clients, bilingual candidates, its team and vendors.
- Celebrating 5th Anniversary (日本語)p. 16By Makana Partners · News
マカナ・パートナーズが創業5周年にあたり、クライアント、候補者、ベンダーへの感謝を述べています。
- New Practitionersp. 17By Makana Partners · News
Makana Partners welcomes Ella Choi as Senior Director and Jayson Pe Benito to its technology recruitment team.
- Market Trendsp. 18By Makana Partners · Market Trends
Japanese firms are expanding spring 2025 hiring amid labor shortages, young workers are looking abroad, and Japan is reworking its foreign labor programs.
- Recent Placementsp. 18By Makana Partners · Placements
A list of eight recent Makana Partners placements by role and industry.
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Editor and contributors
Editor-in-Chief: Yan Sen Lu
Jonathan Stewart
With over 25 years of experience in industries like Pharmaceuticals, Financial Services, and Technology, Jonathan’s recruitment experience spans global talent acquisition, attraction, and management. With a commercially focused mindset and a background in marketing, communication, and employer branding, Jonathan champions a solutions-focused approach to HR. Skilled in developing global talent strategies and building world-class operational recruitment teams, Jonathan advocates for leveraging new technologies to drive better outcomes. After 17 years in Asia Pacific, Jonathan has recently moved back to Europe to Head Global Talent Acquisition for Dialectica, and is based out of Athens.
Naotake Momiyama
As a visionary HR leader, Momiyama san has dedicated his career to driving transformative change. By aligning HR practices with business objectives, Momiyama san has facilitated organizational growth and agility. His track record includes achieving unprecedented business outcomes, enhancing employee engagement, and fostering cultural evolution. Momiyama san is passionate about nurturing agile, business-savvy HR professionals who drive excellence. Momiyama san in creating a thriving HR department at Adecco that not only supports the business but also elevates it to new heights.
James Mesbur
At Micoworks, James is building a brand-new Conversational AI department from scratch. His mission is to empower clients to develop deep, meaningful 1-to-1 relationships with their customers through conversational experiences. His approach is laser-focused on thoughtful, compassionate user experience design, making appropriate choices in technology based on the use case. James also runs a private AI Consulting company helping businesses assess their current use cases and organization to ensure they are setting themselves up for success when embarking on AI projects.
