Hey all- I thought I would share my plan to move to Japan. My soon to be wife and I are planning to move to Japan in 5 years (now 4.5 technically). She can speak Japanese- I do not but I am bi-lingual. We're both 40. Over the next five years I really want to build myself to help make this as seamless and guaranteed as possible.
About Me:
- I've lived abroad for long periods before and have already experienced the highs and lows of it so not expecting any big curve balls.
- Grew up in a Korean/ Japanese household so culture shock isn't a concern.
- Graduated from an Ivy League
- I have ~17 years in IT and cybersecurity.
- Have a PMP and taking my CISSP exam second week of September.
- Currently in a senior leadership role for a company in the IT and cybersecurity space.
- I have a graduate certificate from another ivy but it's in a completely unrelated field so not sure how useful it'll be other than name recognition.
- Currently have family and friends in Japan.
- Currently have an active clearance.
Employment Goal:
My goal is to find employment with an American company, preferably a defense contractor or consulting firm that will use my clearance. A big one for me is still being able to earn an American salary while employed in Japan. I'm going to target roles that are along the lines of a Senior Program Manager/ Director in IT, Cyber/ AI.
What I'm Doing to Make it Happen:
- I speak on panels for IT and cyber topics about once a quarter and want to continue doing that to keep my face out in the community
- I recently built a website as well. It's a blend of "about me" some of my history, I added in a bunch of resources I've used in my career (templates, boiler plate agreements, etc.) and – I post a blog about once a quarter on something relevant to Asia, IT, AI, etc. I want to show more about who I am and demonstrate a history of thought leadership on business and technology topics as it relates to Asia.
- Next on my certification path is the CRISC and then either TOGAF or something in AI
- There isn't really a gold standard for AI certs so I may wait another year or two to see how the industry looks and then pull the trigger. I'd like my certifications to convey expertise in management, governance, risk, cyber, and AI.
- I'm starting take a more active role in Asian American professional groups too.
There's a few different visa paths but I think right now I'm going to aim for the Highly Skilled Professional. We also have a nice home in a good area. In a few years when we sell we hope to pull a decent profit so we'll be able to go over with some money in our pocket. When we do decide to pull the trigger on this, I want to make sure there isn't any doubt about my ability to deliver, adapt, integrate, and contribute. Anyway, that's my plan- thought I'd share and see if anyone has done something similar or has anything I may not have accounted for.
by Western-Lawyer-9050