Innovation is key with Hideo Goto, Henkel Beauty Care Japan

Hello and welcome to the FocusCore Podcast with your host David Sweet. In this episode, David speaks with Hideo Goto, Country General Manager of Henkel Beauty Care Japan and Korea.Hideo has a long career history in beauty and personal care spanning over 20+ years and has been in senior management roles at Henkel Beauty Care since 2017 where he has accelerated business growth by strengthening brand portfolios through innovation and building high-performing teams. By focusing on a strong organizational culture and innovation, Hideo has led Henkel to be a leader in the consumer and professional haircare industry in Japan. In this episode we discuss:Hideo’s career journey that has led him to Henkel Beauty CareThe growth of Henkel, in particular, the haircare business in Japan and their path journey to becoming a powerhouse of hairKey challenges for growing Henkel and how to sustain growth over the next 10 yearsInnovation including digital innovation and product innovationThe company culture of Henkel and how it attracts employees and how Henkel’s strong culture values differentiate them from their competitorsHow leveraging collaboration from within the business to create solutions is keySustainability and how Henkel is adapting to reach the 2030 UN sustainability targets and the importance of sustainability embedded in a company’s values to attract employee candidatesThe impact of Covid-19 on Henkel’s beauty care business and how haircare is thriving due to the pandemicHideo Goto Bio:Hideo Goto is Country General Manager of Henkel Beauty Care Japan and Korea, a position he was promoted to in 2021 having joined Henkel Beauty Care in 2017 as GM of the Professional Division. In 2019, Hideo was promoted as Country GM of Henkel Beauty Care Japan and led both the professional and consumer businesses. In 2020, he successfully turned around consumer business and, in 2021, accelerated the growth and achieved the historically highest market share. Hideo has more than 20 years of experience in health and beauty industry, and a strong track record of driving results.  Prior to Henkel, he started his career at Johnson & Johnson in 1996 in sales and marketing.  In 2005, he joined L’Oreal and spent 11 years there, where he turned around several businesses and scaled the growth.  He held various leadership positions throughout his tenure including GM of Active Cosmetics Division in Japan, GM of Consumer Product Division in Taiwan, and GM of Professional Product Division in Japan.  Hideo earned an MBA from Thunderbird School of Global Management in the U.S. in 2003 and a BBA from Meiji University in 1996.Links of things mentioned in this episode:Henkel Japan Career PageConnect with FocusCore:Website: https://www.japan.focuscoregroup.com/ Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/focuscoreasia Twitter: https://twitter.com/focuscorejp LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/focuscore/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/focuscorejp/ Subscribe on Apple Podcast, Spotify, or wherever you download podcasts.Doin' the Uptown Lowdown," used by permission of Christopher Davis-Shannon. To find out more, check out www.thetinman.co. Support independent musicians and artists.Mentioned in this episode:Find out more about salaries, the job market, hiring and what's important to both companies and individuals looking for a job specifically in Japan. 2025 Salary Guide