The trip ended in the blink of an eye. Nevertheless, we were grateful for the opportunity to travel to Japan as a group to learn more about the fascinating culture and gain insights into the Japanese ecosystem from industry experts across various industries (despite the scorching heat!!).
After returning to the hectic and buzzing Waterloo campus, we gathered our thoughts and reflected on the trip's highlights and key takeaways.
The Weekend
Our day trip to Kyoto was one of the most memorable moments. We travelled to three cities in a day (Tokyo, Kyoto, and Osaka) and visited several cultural sites, including the Arashiyama Bamboo Forest, Fushimi Inari Shrine, and Okochi Sanso Garden. It was also our first full day travelling as a group. It was great catching up with everyone, as it had been a month since we last saw each other, and with everyone together, the trip felt alive and real.
Business Meetings
During the week of meetings, we visited various companies, from start-ups to multinational corporations across different industries. We were responsible for leading the meetings at each company.
The companies included:
- Omron Ventures
- OOYOO
- Toshiba
- UTEC
- Muji Hotel
- Final Aim
- Rakuten
- Incubate Fund
- Nomura Research Institute
- Shell Japan
- Astellas Pharma
- Globis Capital Partners
- MUFG
Throughout the meetings, we encountered several recurring topics from the professionals, but gaining insight into their unique perspectives was incredibly valuable. Here are some things that we have learned:
- The Japanese Government has various monetary and non-monetary initiatives to support startups' growth and sustainability.
- Instead of entering large companies and staying in the same company for life, new graduates are job-hopping and leaning towards working for a startup.
If you're interested in seeing our key takeaways from each company, please visit the school’s LinkedIn page: University of Waterloo School of Accounting and Finance.
Overall, the Japan trip was a success. We not only achieved our goal of learning more about the current Japanese ecosystem across different industries, but we also built deep connections with each other and many of the industry professionals.