Hello, my name is Aedan Southeren from Australia and I am currently working as a Wealth Management and Investment Banking Systems Analyst for FinIQ Consulting. I graduated from Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University in 2021 with a Bachelor's in Accounting and Finance. I was interested in learning an Asian language and decided to learn Japanese because I was interested in Japan’s culture of efficiency and technological innovation.

What I put the most effort into • my most memorable experience in university

• Business Case Competitions

  Although it's hard to narrow down my most memorable university experience, I think one would be the business case competitions. I was able to do well across international and particularly domestic competitions in a variety of teams, and this presented a huge learning curve for me. To be honest, starting out I didn’t really know what a business case was since I had no prior interest in the consulting industry. This later turned out to be great practice for me to learn about the industry and core skills and mindsets associated with it. My good friend is the one who pushed me to join together saying we could learn a lot. Through the competitions, I was able to gain time management abilities, research skills, display research data, presentation, and be more confident in my capabilities.

• Volunteering / Translating

  I also worked in a Teaching Assistant position for three and a half years, where I was able to form connections with many professors at my university. It was a great opportunity for me to learn from people of different age brackets. I was often involved with assisting the school offices with student ambassadors, outreaching, and working with the local broadcast station. I even had the wonderful opportunity to work at the Olympics and World Cup as a translator and interpreter, both paid and volunteer work. That led to me even translating for an important diplomatic event which included members of the Diet, the governor, and international ambassadors as well. The volunteer and translator work I did throughout university was rewarding as I got to work with local governments by reporting on their nuclear cleanup efforts and work that expanded tourism in Beppu. 

Things that he/she regrets not doing during their university/college life

• I wish I could have done more with a community that was on-campus. I feel as though with my focus elsewhere at the time, my contribution to the culture and success of the school was less impactful than it could’ve been. If I had the abilities and skills that I do now I would have likely been able to push further with efforts I was a part of, or  contributed to another group that was in a better position to be more impactful.

Find Your Motivation

Shukatsu was a bit of a struggle for me because it felt like an impersonal process and it was difficult to get to a stage where you can be properly evaluated and make a lasting impression. For the vast majority of the jobs that I applied for, I didn’t get far in the shukatsu process. However, at one company I was able to get quite far, but encountered issues due more to perceptions over background and my ability to interact with clients than my performance in the interviews. Later, I had an offer rescinded halfway through the final formalities, so I ended up back at square one and it felt difficult to find a reason to continue shukatsu. It was hard to know what I was doing wrong since you don’t get feedback after the interviews. However, I wanted to prove to myself that I could get a job in Japan after all the efforts I had put into learning Japanese and attending university in Japan. In the end, it was my LinkedIn profile and a recruiter approaching me with a unique opportunity that allowed me to take advantage of my entire skillset. Compared to the painstaking and lengthy process shukatsu normally is, the quality fit between the firm and I meant it was decided I would be the first full-time domestic employee rather quickly.

Soft Skills

• While everyone may know language skills are important, intercultural communication skills are equally as important in Japan, so having patience and understanding of differences are a must. This also requires humility to not always assume that everyone is on the same page as you. Working in Japan requires a lot of soft skills by accepting that there are divergent ways of working in different countries. 

Stress-Coping

• You also need to have the ability to cope with a lot of pressure. Working conditions can often leave a lot to be desired: there is less focus on well-being in Japan comparatively. Due to that, you need to find a way to manage the stress, so making sure you find a healthy outlet for coping with work-related pressures is important. 

Perseverance and Diligence

• There is not a surefire way to succeed in Japan without perseverance and diligence, whether it be: your work, finding a job, making friends, or asking for help when you need it. It requires a lot of input and not much feedback until you finally get there. Rather than just accept what you’ve been given and being left unsatisfied, I encourage you to push for what you want and keep trying at it.

I had always aimed to join the finance industry but through business competitions and internships, I saw the merit in consulting as well. By joining fintech, I was able to learn in a consulting-like environment which made me really happy. My two interested industries happened to align the best with fintech and that made me feel lucky.  Soon after I joined, the company decided to expand to my home country of Australia so now I’m able to return home with work on a routine basis.

Beginning right in the middle of COVID, and as the first domestic full-time hire was strange as there was no direct physical working community or structure. My background was also rather different from everyone I was interacting with on a daily basis. This meant I was quite unsure of myself to begin with, however an earnest approach and endless questions regarding fulfilling my role tasks meant that eventually, I built my own system of managing my tasks and assignments to best fit me. But it was a big learning experience for me.