Discover New Perspective on
– Communication –
– Management –
– Team Building –
– Leadership –
in Emerging Markets
Mentorship Program to Build Trust and Lead with Confidence
Transform Your Cultural Challenges into
Trust & Confidence
with Personalized Mentorship
Struggling with Challenges in Emerging Markets?
・Frustration when your projects don’t progress as planned in emerging markets
・Misunderstandings and mistrust with local partners and staff
・Difficulty building cohesive, motivated teams
・Communication breakdowns despite clear instructions
・Lack of transparency from local colleagues and partners
・Frustration with slow decision-making or bureaucratic processes
・Missed deadlines and unpredictable workflows causing stress
・Blurred professional boundaries making relationship-building confusing
・Language barriers causing complicated challenging situations
If you’re nodding your head,
you’re not alone.
During my 20+ years
as an expatriate manager
in 7 Emerging Markets,
I’ve personally faced and overcome
the same challenges with yours.
Unlock Success in Emerging Markets with Expert Mentorship
My 3-month Mentorship Program gives you personalized strategies to navigate emerging market business relationships with confidence and authenticity.
This isn’t about generic cross-cultural training—it’s about developing your unique approach to leadership in challenging emerging markets.
Why My Mentorship Program Is Different?
My Mentorship Program fundamentally differs from conventional cross-cultural training and coaching in several important ways:
Personalized Solutions, Not Generic Guidelines:
The solutions that work for you depend on your organizational position, personality, and the specific relationships you’re navigating.
What works for one person may be ineffective for another. Unlike standard training that offers only general cultural tendencies, we create strategies precisely calibrated to your unique situation.
Practical Expertise When You Need It:
Traditional coaching focuses exclusively on self-reflection and self-directed action, which has limitations:
・It keeps you confined within your existing thought patterns
・It’s ineffective when immediate solutions are required.
・It doesn’t provide expert guidance in unfamiliar territory.
When you face urgent challenges in emerging markets, you need both reflection AND actionable expertise.
I combine my academic knowledge and two decades of field experience to provide specific, implementable advice tailored to your circumstances.
The greatest strength of my mentoring program lies in its personalized approach to solving your unique challenges.
Unlike general intercultural training or coaching, which often offer broad knowledge or focus mainly on self-reflection, this Mentorship Program tailors solutions specifically to your situation.
Every mentee’s challenges and optimal responses vary depending on factors such as:
- Your organizational role/position
- Your personality
- Relationship dynamics with colleagues or partners
- Your experience of working abroad
- Language proficiency of your colleagues, partners and yourself, etc.
What works well for one person may not be effective for another.
My mentoring program combines my 20+ years of practical experience working in emerging markets with academic insights from my doctoral research.
This enables me to offer you concrete, actionable advice tailored to your pressing needs, helping you implement effective strategies quickly and confidently.
Meet Your Mentor: Dr. Koichi Okabe
・Supporting 300+ business professionals worldwide
・Coach/Mentor in cross-cultural communication, management, and adaptation
・20+ years of business management experience as an expatriate across 7 emerging markets (Sri Lanka, Zambia, Papua New Guinea, Vietnam, Malaysia, Jordan, and South Africa)
・Obtained Doctoral Degree (DBA) in Intercultural Communication
・Certified “Global Dexterity” Practitioner (the First Japanese Trainer)
I’ve walked in your shoes. During my two decades as an expatriate manager across six countries, I’ve:
・Experienced the shock of losing seven team members at once who found my internationally standard management style culturally jarring
・Encountered mutual misunderstanding caused by the differences of basic assumptions as to how to communicate among team members to get the jobs done
・Felt pressure between expectations and requirements in headquarters (Japan) and local realities
・Doubted my ability to succeed in international business in emerging markets or developing countries
・Found myself isolated and struggling to build trust with local teams
These challenges led me to pursue the Doctoral degree in Intercultural Communication and become the first certified “Global Dexterity” coach in Japan under the mentorship of Dr. Andy Molinsky at Brandeis University.
I’ve since guided over 300 professionals through similar challenges, helping them transform frustration into fulfilling cross-cultural partnerships.
The Mentoring Approach: Visibility Creates Possibility
My 3-month program is built on three powerful pillars:
To bring your daily frustrations and tensions into the open, transforming vague discomfort into specific, solvable problems.
To identify the core values and beliefs that trigger your stress in cross-cultural situations—often revealing important insights you haven’t recognized.
To develop practical behaviors that honor your authentic self while effectively engaging with your international colleagues.
Who Is This Program For?
・Business leaders and managers expanding into or operating in emerging and developing markets
・Professionals managing multicultural teams or local partners in Asia, Africa, the Middle East, or Latin America
・Businesspeople struggling with communication, trust, or leadership challenges in cross-cultural business settings
・International aid workers working with partners, colleagues in emerging and developing markets
Working Together with Me, You will…
Develop your own approach to emerging market relationships that fit your personality, position, and specific contexts.
Build genuine trust with colleagues and partners across cultural divides in emerging markets,
Earn recognition and credibility from both local teams and headquarters leadership,
Experience the satisfaction of achieving meaningful results in challenging environments,
Master specific techniques for motivating teams in different cultural contexts,
Navigate complex situations with newfound confidence and cultural intelligence, and
Boost confidence and emotional stability.
Ready to Build Trust and Lead with Confidence in Emerging Markets?
TAKE THE FIRST STEP NOW!
Book Your 90 Minutes Free
Personal Consultation
Discover Your Path Forward
Begin Your Journey
Take the first step by scheduling a free one-on-one consultation where we can discuss your specific challenges and concerns. All consultations are conducted via Zoom. Please suggest at least two preferred dates and times when completing the form.
During my 90-minute free consultation, we’ll explore your specific challenges in depth and I’ll recommend a program tailored to your unique situation. If you feel it’s a good fit, we can proceed with enrolment—but there’s absolutely no pressure to commit. This session is designed purely to determine if we’re the right match for your needs.
Once your payment is confirmed, we’ll schedule our first official session where we’ll dive deeper into your challenges and establish clear goals for your program. While the mentoring program is structured for 5 months, a complimentary one-month extension is available if needed for your development.
Client Testimonials
Since most of my interactions with overseas team members are online, I used to get frustrated when responses were delayed or unclear. Dr. Okabe taught me how to ask questions and engage in ways that encourage better communication with my counterparts in southeast Asia. As a result, I’ve been able to build more personal connections with partners, making collaboration smoother and more productive.
Client from the UK working with remote teams in Southeast Asia
Before the mentoring program, I often thought my Chinese colleagues were irresponsible and difficult to work with because they treated me like a stranger, and language barriers made communication painful. The program helped me realize that I could adjust my communication style and better understand their perspectives, and that I needed to develop personal relationship first. While I still face challenges, I no longer react negatively by default, and I’ve learned how to work more effectively with them.
Client from Australia working with Chinese colleagues
Assigned as a project lead in Cambodia, I felt overwhelmed by cultural differences and the pressure of responsibility. I lacked confidence in managing the local team because there were language barrier and it was really difficult to tell what they were really think, and dreaded each day. Through conversations with Dr. Okabe, I realized how much my own assumptions had been holding me back. Now, I see this experience as a valuable opportunity for my growth.
Client from Japan working in Cambodia
I used to be very direct in the communication with my Indian colleagues so that I would not invite misunderstanding with them, which however made them uncomfortable in our communication, giving them the impression that I was so rude and aggressive. Meanwhile, their communication sounds unclear for me and could not understand what they really meant. I was so frustrated with the communication with them and doubted whether I could succeed in the Indian environment. Thanks to the mentoring program, I found ways how to get their real meanings by setting up more personal communication opportunities with each of my colleagues.
Client from Germany working with Indian colleagues
Communication with our French partners was always frustrating because their style looked so aggressive and demanding; I often found their attitude irritating. But since working with Mr. Koichi, the biggest change has been in how I interpreted their behaviour based on my own values and assumptions. Now, while we may not be perfectly in sync, I experience far less stress when working with them. Even my supervisors in Japan have noticed my confidence, and improved communication and teamwork with French colleagues.
Client from Japan working with French partners via online
Most of my Vietnamese colleagues rarely spoke to me face-to-face, so I was completely confused about what they were thinking and whether my way of working was accepted or not. Although some of them spoke good English, when I relied on that person to communicate with the other Vietnamese team members, I felt somewhat excluded from the communication. On the other hand, when I tried to speak directly with Vietnamese staff, communication often broke down because their English was limited. It was truly a struggle. However, through Koichi’s mentoring program, I gained clarity on how they see me and was able to implement concrete strategies to draw out their honest opinions. Thanks to that, I now understand how to communicate effectively with them.
Client from the US working with Vietnamese staff