Corporate Planning Analyst - Japanese Bilingual

POSITION SUMMARY:

The Corporate Planning team serves as a vital bridge between the U.S. local entity and Japan Headquarters (HQ), ensuring timely reporting and cross-border alignment. This position will be responsible for driving various critical and wide-ranging business initiatives, including budget planning, mid-term business plan formulation, sales management system enhancements, production/logistics optimization, and cross-functional project management.

Initially, the successful candidate will own assigned data aggregation, financial analysis and material preparation for ongoing high-priority projects. Additionally, the role is resonsible for ad-hoc data analysis requests from executive management and supporting the overall operational capacity of the team while gaining a comprehensive understanding of our business operations. Ultimately, the job holder will indepently plan and execute major projects as the primary owner/project manager.

Key Responsibilities

1. Corporate Planning & Performance Management (Leading Planning, Budgeting, and Profitability Analysis)

• Coordinate with various departments to collect, aggregate, and analyze data for budgeting, mid-term business planning, and key performance management frameworks (KPIs, ROIC, etc.).
• Run simulations and identify business challenges for business portfolio analysis and segment/product profitability evaluations (such as visualizing marginal profits).
• Assume full ownership of specific areas of budgeting and mid-term business planning, independently leading plan formulations and cross-border adjustments with HQ.

2. Enhancing Sales Management & Data Visualization

• Track progress of sales and order data, and update/create variance (gap) analysis reports against targets for executive review.
• Support the automation and standardization of sales and marketing reports by leveraging internal data tools (BI tools, Tableau, Excel, etc.).
• Conduct data analysis on sales discount rules and specific market/customer performances to propose concrete improvement measures to the sales department.

3. Project Management Office (PMO) & Cross-Functional Coordination

• Serve as Project Manager, including managing stakeholders, timelines and schedules via Gantt charts and needed resources, for assigned cross-functional initiatives, such as new product development and factory production transfers.
• Respond promptly to urgent data extraction and research requests (ad-hoc analysis) from management and structure the findings into clear executive reports.
• Lead information sharing, negotiations, and alignments with relevant stakeholders (Japan HQ, Logistics, QC, external vendors, etc.) for corporate and logistics operational tasks, such as tracking reciprocal tariff/duty refunds.

4. Process Standardization & Documentation

• Document data aggregation processes and recurring reporting workflows that are currently reliant on specific individuals. Create and maintain clear step-by-step manuals to ensure workflow efficiency and operational continuity.

Qualifications & Skills

Required Qualifications

• Education: Bachelor's degree in Business Administration, Accounting, Finance, Data Analytics or related field.
• Professional Experience: 2 to 5 years of professional experience leading data analysis or report preparation in Corporate Planning, Finance/Accounting, Sales Planning, Business Analysis, or Management Consulting. (Agility and data processing speed are valued over years of experience).
• Data Analysis Skills: Advanced Excel skills (proficiency in formulas, pivot tables, data manipulation, and cross-referencing large datasets).
• Flexibility & Multi-Tasking: Ability to handle multiple projects simultaneously with speed and agility in a fast-paced, ad-hoc environment where priorities can shift rapidly.
• Language & Communication Skills:
• Japanese: Business level or higher is mandatory (Native or equivalent). Must be able to independently manage seamless information exchange, handle complex business requirements, and draft/coordinate materials with Japan HQ (Corporate Planning and other related divisions).
• English: Business level. Ability to clearly understand directives from local management and local staff, translating them accurately into data and structured documentation.

Preferred Qualifications

• Data Visualization Skills: Hands-on experience with BI tools (Tableau, Power BI, etc.) or experience in data validation.
• Industry Knowledge: Professional background or foundational knowledge in the manufacturing sector, supply chain, or logistics operations.
• Project Management: Experience in project tracking (PMO) or creating structured business process documentation and manuals.
• ERP Systems: Foundational knowledge of data extraction and system utilization using ERP platforms (such as IFS).