About us

Olivier van Beneden

Enriched by his experiences in Japan and Japanese companies, Olivier founded JCO to enhance mutual understanding between Europe and Japan. Active in the Japanese community in Brussels (chairman and member of the Friendship and Business committees of the Belgium-Japan Association & Chamber of Commerce), Olivier is familiar with the challenges that Japanese and Europeans face in working together. He is a graduate of the Katholieke University of Leuven, Belgium, and the University of Kansai (MA) in Osaka, Japan.

Nikolaus Mach-Hour

Nikolaus has been studying Japanese and working with Japanese for more than 30 years. After living in Tokyo and in Hokkaido in the ’90s in order to improve his language skills and also to work in Japanese companies, he returned to Munich to finish his studies in communication. After successfully running a company catering to Japanese expatriates gaining experience in managing both Japanese and non-Japanese staff, he joined JCO in 2009.
He is a senior trainer and consultant that has devised and facilitated many global programs for JCO customers.

As VP of global strategy he is in charge of new programs.

Saskia Rock

Saskia’s career spans more than 2 decades and has taken her to 3 continents, but wherever she goes the link with Japan remains strong. Her experience includes working as a consultant on Diversity & Inclusion and Global Talent at Deloitte in Tokyo.

Her dedication to helping people communicate and grow led her to start her own event and consulting business in Belgium in 2008, before relocating to Japan in 2013 to pursue an MBA at GLOBIS University. In 2018 she moved to California with her husband Makoto. It was a natural choice for her to join JCO and use her skills to help Japanese and American colleagues better communicate and work together.

Kasia Lynch

Kasia a trilingual American who spent 8 years in Japan. She earned her Bachelor’s from Boston University and Master’s from Tokyo’s Ochanomizu University. Kasia’s career utilizing Japanese language and cultural skills began in 2003 with concert promotion, and later moved to interpreting/translating, electronics, and the automotive industry. Since starting Ikigai Connections in 2018, Kasia has been featured in various Japan-related podcasts, websites, and webinars, including the US-Japan Bridging Foundation, USJETAA, Laurasian Institution, and BFF Tokyo.

Yusuke Fukuda

Yusuke has been living in Europe for more than 20 years, starting out at a major Japanese corporation.
He stayed in Germany around 10 years, first as MD, head of European Sales of Automotive components manufacturer in Munich, then as director in charge of strategy and market research.

Yusuke uses his multi-decade experience in Japanese and European business culture to train, consult and coach Japanese and non-Japanese staff.
His extensive leadership and experience makes him the ideal coach and sparring partner for Japanese managers and executives that are new to a leadership role in Europe

Aska Tsuchiya

Aska is an intercultural consultant and business school lecturer. In addition to B.A. in anthropology from New York University and M.B.A. from IE Business School in Spain, she has a trainer’s certificate from the professional training federation (FFP) in France. A native Japanese raised in Tokyo, she has lived in seven countries and worked in five (US, Japan, UK, Denmark and France) with over 20 years of experience from major companies in banking, airline, consumer goods and medical industries.

Dr. Mira Lugonja-Knipping

Mira lived and worked in Tokyo for 10 years. She graduated with a doctorate in Cultural Heritage Conservation and worked in various roles in Japan – as an art restorer, English language teacher, multilingual interpreter for the FIFA World Cup, Winter Olympics, as well as for Diplomacies and TV broadcasters. Following her return to her native Croatia, she founded and successfully managed a company with a focus on connecting Japanese and Croatian markets.
She was particularly active in cross-cultural consulting for the Croatian government and Japanese investors, as well as in coordination of Japanese documentary films about Croatia on behalf of Japanese production companies.

Mira is a certified Conflict Competence Coach and has an additional focus on Work & Life Balance. She is fluent in English, German, Japanese and Croatian.

Rie Eichmann

Having lived, studied, and worked in Japan, Taiwan, Thailand, the US, UK, and Australia, Rie has gained profound insights into the differences, values, and work ethics of both the eastern and western worlds.

As a certified cross-cultural trainer holding an MBA, CELTA certification, expertise in NLP, and completion of trainer's training, she has acquired invaluable skills from her diverse professional and personal experiences.

Throughout her career, she has collaborated with, managed, and recruited individuals from over 60 different nationalities, granting her a deep understanding of the complexities and challenges involved in working within international environments.

Sunao Fuji

Sunao Fujii has more than 25 years of consulting and training experience. Prior to moving to Singapore, he was based in Tokyo and worked for a management consulting firm assisting foreign firms entering the Japanese market. On this basis, he broadened his skills with experience in over dozens of consulting and training assignments spanning across various industries.

Tim de Nordwall

Tim is working with Japan Consulting Office since 2017 and brings 20+ years of international Learning & Development management experience to his clients. He is British born, has lived and worked in many different countries and he can facilitate workshops in English, French and Dutch. Tim worked for 10 years in a Belgian-Japanese joint-venture and 3 years as the Learning & Development Manager EMEA for a Japanese medical device company. He is JCO's resident HR L&D expert and consults for many JCO clients on regional and global customised programs and L&D projects.