East Asia

Hiring Your First Person in East Asia: Who, Where and How

By Paolo Petrolini · Published 2 Oct 2026 · 4 min read

The signs that it is time

• You have chosen the first market and agreed what success means.
• A partner is signed or close to signing and needs someone to work with.
• One or more customers in the country are waiting for local support.
• Deals are stalling because of the time difference with the US.

If none of these apply, a hire is early. Use visits and outside advice until they do.

Who the first hire should be

In this region the first person does a different job from a US sales rep. Much of the selling goes through partners. The job is to recruit and support those partners, build relationships with the first customers and explain the market to headquarters.

Look for someone who:

• is from the country and has sold enterprise technology there,
• has worked for a foreign vendor before and can operate between two business cultures,
• is senior enough to be taken seriously by partner executives,
• speaks English well enough to tell headquarters what it does not want to hear.

In Japan and South Korea, seniority and personal reputation matter to buyers. A junior hire with a quota will struggle to get meetings.

Where to base them

In the market you are entering. A person in Hong Kong cannot build a business in Japan, and a person in Tokyo adds little in Seoul or Taipei.

If the first market is Hong Kong or Taiwan, the same person can later take on the region. If the first market is Japan or South Korea, expect that person to stay focused there.

How to employ them

• Employer of record. A local company employs the person on your behalf. Fast to set up and suitable for the first one or two people.
• Branch or representative office. Lighter than a subsidiary, with limits on what it can do in some countries.
• Local subsidiary. Needed once you have several employees or sign customers directly. In Japan it also adds credibility.

Employment law, notice periods and benefits differ in every country, and they differ a lot from the US. Take local advice before making an offer.

Setting them up to succeed

1. One owner at headquarters, available for a regular call at a time that works in Asia.
2. Goals that match the market. Partners signed and pilots started in the first two quarters, revenue after that.
3. Time in the US first, with product, sales and support teams.
4. Decision rights. Authority over local pricing and terms within agreed limits, so deals do not wait a day for each answer.
5. Visits from leadership. Senior people from headquarters meeting partners and customers shows commitment.

Before the first hire

There is a gap between deciding to enter and having the right person in place. Finding a senior hire in Japan can take six months or more. Use that time to decide what the role is: which accounts and partners the person will own, what they can decide alone and how success is measured in the first year.

This is the stage where I usually advise. I help define the profile and the targets, so the search starts with a clear brief. The hiring and the relationships stay with the company.

Common questions