BlackRock Investment Stewardship (BIS), Vice President, Japan

As an independent, fiduciary asset manager, BlackRock is committed to acting at all times in the best long-term interests of our clients.  BlackRock Investment Stewardship serves as a link between our clients and the companies they invest in. 

We take a long-term approach to stewardship, focused on engaging with company boards and executive leadership to understand the drivers of risk and financial value creation in companies’ business models.  

The work of BlackRock’s BIS team is an investment function. The team operates in nine offices across three regions – the Americas (New York, San Francisco, Wilmington, and Washington DC); Europe, Middle East and Africa (London); and Asia-Pacific (Tokyo, Hong Kong, Singapore and Sydney) – and undertakes engagement with and proxy voting at portfolio companies on behalf of clients globally. 

For clients who authorize us to vote on their behalf, we use voting to formally communicate our support for or concerns about how companies are serving the financial interests of our clients as long-term investors.  

Role description: 

The BIS Vice President will work as part of a team focused on Japan. The role reports to the Head of BIS APAC and is based in Tokyo. The intention is for the person in this role to specialize in corporate governance, environmental and social issues as an investment theme or risk. The successful candidate will cover several sectors in Japan, for voting and engagement purposes, and facilitate the overall development of team capabilities. 

Key Responsibilities: 

• Serve as an expert in their local market for BlackRock's Investment Stewardship team, including for key audiences internally and externally. The individual will conduct research on portfolio companies to support the assessment of corporate governance practices and material sustainability-related risks and opportunities from an investment perspective; 

• Implement BIS corporate governance policies for sectors and the key markets in the region through engagement with investee companies, including voting at shareholder meetings; 

• Engage with Board Chairs, CEO(s) and other senior representatives of the companies in which BlackRock invests to address a range of issues including industry trends, strategy and performance in addition to corporate governance; 

• Monitor various corporate governance standards and best practices in the market and contribute to internal guidelines refreshment; 

• Initiate, lead, and/or participate in internal research projects as required. This could also include contributing to key public policy debates and responding to policy consultations; 

• Engage in public speaking opportunities to disseminate our approach on stewardship to wider constituencies; 

• Contribute to regular updates of our publicly available documents, including voting guidelines, ensuring their relevance and timeliness; 

• Collaborate with BlackRock’s client-facing group and with clients directly to ensure client reporting and client presentations meet expectations, and that client queries on stewardship are responded to promptly and to the satisfaction of the client;  

• Contribute to the continual review of the BIS team’s output and working practices to ensure risks are minimised and performance optimised.  

The person in this role will be/will have: 

• An undergraduate degree in finance, economics, accounting, business, communications, or relevant fields. 

• 4-9 years of experience in a financial service focused role, ideally with a demonstrated strong understanding of financial statements and corporate finance. 

• Investment management, investment banking, corporate finance, investor relations, consulting and/or legal experience is an advantage. 

• Excellent analytical skills with very strong attention to detail. 

• The ability to build and maintain successful relationships with colleagues across the firm and with external parties.  

• The ability to analyse and resolve complex problems under time pressure.  

• Excellent verbal and written communication skills combined with agile critical thinking and a problem-solving mindset. 

• Ability to collaborate with both technical and non-technical personnel. 

• Detail focused and persistent to see things through to completion whilst managing multiple tasks and changing priorities.  

• Organized, self-reliant, and self-motivated. 

• Extensive knowledge of Excel and strong knowledge of the entire MS Office suite. 

• Experience in data analysis, consolidation and creating detailed reports; creativity with clear charts and tables a strong plus. 

• Excellent communication skills, both written and oral, including the ability to communicate clearly and persuasively with senior colleagues, investee company representatives, and the public. 

• Proficiency in Japanese and English.