Chief of Staff (Tokyo, Japan)

Location:
Tokyo, Japan

Function:
Client Engagement & Strategy Delivery

Reports to:
Engagement Manager

Employment Type:
Full-time

Bilingual Required:
Japanese–English

Role Overview

The Chief of Staff serves as the in-market operational and strategic lead for
Arrowroot Capital's
Japan-based consulting and analytics program with a leading global beverage client. This role ensures the seamless implementation of
Arrowroot Capital's
Price Image Science and advanced Business Intelligence solutions, translating analytics into measurable commercial value. The ideal candidate combines strategic consulting expertise, operational discipline, and a strong understanding of Japan's retail and vending market—acting as both program architect and trusted advisor to senior stakeholders.

Key Responsibilities

Client & Stakeholder Leadership

• Serve as the primary in-market interface for client executives, functional leaders, and operational teams.
• Translate
  Arrowroot Capital's
  advanced analytical insights into practical, business-ready strategies that drive sales, margin, and brand equity.
• Lead client meetings and steering sessions, ensuring alignment on program milestones, dependencies, and change impacts.
• Build long-term strategic partnerships through trust, responsiveness, and consistent delivery.

Program Oversight & Execution

• Oversee all Japan-based program operations, ensuring effective coordination between field data collection, data science, and client communication streams.
• Provide leadership to the Field Audit Coordinator and data collection partners responsible for sampling, data validation, and audit execution across prefectures.
• Manage local logistics, scheduling, and budget oversight while maintaining alignment with global project timelines and quality standards.
• Ensure adherence to
  Arrowroot Capital's
  data integrity, QA, and governance frameworks throughout all stages of the project.

Implementation of Price Image Science & Advanced Analytics

• Lead the local implementation of
  Arrowroot Capital's
  Price Image Science models, ensuring outputs are contextualized for Japan's unique retail and consumer landscape.
• Partner with global data science and BI teams to integrate predictive pricing, elasticity, and competitive intelligence models into actionable client dashboards.
• Translate model outputs into commercial narratives that resonate with executive and operational audiences.
• Support the buildout and localization of advanced BI tools, ensuring accessibility, accuracy, and adoption across client teams.
• Oversee pilot testing, user feedback loops, and continuous improvement of analytical deliverables.

Change Management & Capability Building

• Manage and guide the Change Management Consultant, ensuring alignment with adoption and transformation objectives.
• Design and oversee training programs, playbooks, and internal communication strategies that embed analytical decision-making into client operations.
• Facilitate workshops that build confidence in
  Arrowroot Capital's
  insights and foster internal champions of data-driven transformation.

Cultural & Organizational Bridge

• Act as a strategic cultural translator between
  Arrowroot Capital's
  global leadership and Japan-based client stakeholders.
• Adapt global methodologies to Japan's business context, ensuring recommendations are operationally and culturally feasible.
• Foster collaboration across bilingual and multicultural workstreams, ensuring precision and respect in all interactions.

Qualifications & Experience

Required

• 10+ years of experience in management consulting, commercial strategy, or analytics-driven transformation—preferably within retail, CPG, or beverage sectors.
• Proven ability to lead complex, multi-stakeholder programs integrating data, analytics, and operations.
• Strong understanding of Japan's retail, vending, and consumer goods ecosystems.
• Fluent Japanese and English, with exceptional cross-cultural communication and presentation skills.
• Proficiency in interpreting analytical models, BI dashboards, and operational KPIs.
• Experience in change management, technology adoption, or digital transformation initiatives.

Competencies

• Strategic Integrator:
  Bridges business strategy and analytical execution.
• Operational Leader:
  Orchestrates cross-functional delivery and field operations.
• Data-Driven Translator:
  Converts complex analytics into business-ready insights.
• Cross-Cultural Navigator:
  Balances global standards with local nuance.
• Change Champion:
  Drives adoption of new tools, mindsets, and capabilities.
• Trusted Advisor:
  Builds influence through clarity, credibility, and accountability.